A Hat's Past
by Mr. Mega1423
Summary: The recently appointed CEO of Time has found a baby girl in an alleyway and has taken it upon himself to raise her by hand. However, as she grows up, obstacles and challenges shall arise that will challenge both persons' wills and characters. Prequel to A Tale Of Two Children. Rated T for a small bit of violence, possibly some cursing, alcohol reference, etc.
1. Prologue

Prologue

He walked out of the building, talking to one of his employees about business and the limitless possibilities there were for him. The employee then left and the man took a deep breath of joy, but then he heard something that confused him.

It sounded like an infant crying.

He turned around and heard it coming from a dark alleyway, and out of curiosity, he checked the alley, and he gasped when he saw a baby girl laying there, crying. He looked around and called out for the parents of the young girl, but no one came. Knowing he wouldn't forgive himself if he just left her there, he gently picked up the girl in his arms and began trying to comfort her.

"There, there, young one. You aren't alone now," He cooed, and the infant slowly calmed down and fell asleep. He then saw something laying on the ground where the girl was laying, a piece of paper. He picked it up and read what was on it.

"This must be her birth certificate," He mumbled to himself, "But why would her birth certificate be laying here if...?" Then the realization hit him. This wasn't an accident. This was intended. He read the name printed on the paper.

Heather Harriet Starweaver.

He raised an eyebrow. The Starweavers were the girl's parents? He cursed under his breath. Why would such prestigious people stoop so low? He shook his head, then he looked at the girl and smiled.

"You aren't alone now, Heather. You aren't alone now," He cooed, then thought to himself. It seemed far too late to bring the girl to an adoption center, and he couldn't just leave her there to die, so he had an idea.

He'd look over the young girl for the night, and the next day, he'd bring her to an adoption center or orphanage.

His plans, however, would soon change.


	2. Chapter 1: Adoption

Chapter 1: Adoption

**A/N: Prequel time. I haven't thought out this as much as the story itself so it might be a bit less smooth or whatever. No matter, enjoy.**

He returned to his penthouse and laid the child down on the couch, then was about to leave to get some supplies, but she woke up and began crying, so he had to stop and return to her. He calmed the child down, then realized that she probably didn't want to be left alone again, so he summoned one of the building's workers and advised them to get baby supplies, much to the worker's surprise.

About 15 minutes later, she returned with the supplies and gave them to him, but didn't leave.

"Tim, who's the baby?" She asked, "Where's her parents?"

The man, who now that he looked down was revealed to have three eyes, sighed.

"I don't know where her parents are. I found her in an alleyway with her birth certificate," He explained sadly, "Because of the way the child and the certificate were when I found her, I'm thinking it was intentional, as horrific as that possibility may seem."

"Why didn't you bring her to an adoption center or orphanage?" The worker asked.

"Do you not know what time it is? It's far too late for that, and whenever I leave the child, she cries," He muttered.

"So, what's your plan?" She asked again.

"I'm thinking I'll keep her here until tomorrow morning, then I'll bring her to an adoption center," He explained, and the worker nodded contently and left.

He spent the rest of the night caring for the infant, who seemed calm until he went anywhere, then she would cry out loudly. Tim sighed, and picked up the girl in her arms, who fell asleep with a quiet yawn.

He smiled warmly at the girl. He wouldn't admit it, but he was already growing attached. He slowly put her down in a crib the worker brought in, and then turned on a small box which began emitting a hologram, then he watched the news display on it.

If... no, when he found the Starweavers, he would talk to them and try to convince them to take their child back, and hopefully they would agree. If they didn't, he didn't know what he would do.

On that thought, he drifted off into sleep.

He woke up in the morning, and saw the child sleeping peacefully, and smiled warmly again. He summoned someone to watch over her while he was gone and left, got in his vehicle, and drove to an adoption center, but when he got there, all he saw was construction equipment.

He saw someone in construction gear and walked up to him.

"Wasn't there an adoption center here?" He asked the guy, who shrugged his shoulders.

"It's closing down, we're destroying the building," The cons-destruction guy explained, and Tim sighed. He got back into his vehicle and drove for an hour around the gigantic futuristic city, but he couldn't find any open adoption centers or orphanages, and he cursed under his breath.

He returned to his penthouse and walked in, and sighed when he saw the kid up and freaking out, and the worker tired and trying to comfort her, but failing miserably. The worker saw the look on his face and raised an eyebrow.

"What happened?" She asked.

"I drove all around Xereo and found nothing. No open adoption centers _or_ orphanages," He grumbled, and the worker sighed.

"So, what will the CEO of Time do?" She asked light-heartedly.

"I'll keep her around for awhile, until something shows up," He explained.

And so he did. He kept the baby girl around for a week, and when nothing showed up, a week turned into a month, and he gave up.

One day, he sat down with his face in his hands and groaned from exasperation. He turned to the girl, who he had grown attached to, and smiled.

"You know what? You're very lucky, kid. I'm gonna raise you myself," He told her, and the girl simply responded with infantile gibberish, and he chuckled. Perhaps it was a good thing that he couldn't find a place for her.


	3. Chapter 2: Rocky Road

Chapter 2: Rocky Road

**A/N: I should mention that most of the chapters of this story may be much shorter than the chapters in my other story. **_**BUT,**_** I plan on putting them out faster than I did with my other story, to balance it out. Hopefully this isn't much of an inconvenience.**

A year had passed since Tim had taken it upon himself to raise the little girl. He had decided that he would hold back both her name and her heredity from her until the time was right.

On her first birthday, unsurprisingly, no one really showed up for it. People didn't really seem to know or care about Tim raising a little girl. However, he most certainly did, and he kept growing more attached to the girl.

The day where she said her first word was possibly one of the most shocking days for Tim's life, but also one of his best.

He was feeding the little girl when she began mumbling her typical gibberish, until she formulated a distinct 'd' sound, which made the three-eyed Time Lord raise an eyebrow, and she suddenly said the word happily.

"Dada!" She said slowly, and he nearly dropped her from surprise and had to put her down, which made the girl giggle. He began chuckling as well, but more sadly.

"No, kiddo, I'm not your dada. I'm just someone who didn't want to see a baby abandoned," He explained sadly, and she stopped giggling. He then summoned the worker he trusted the kid with and left. He needed to think about things.

He walked out of the building and sighed. The girl thought he was her father. True, she didn't have any other reason to believe it, but it still unsettled him. If she truly did grow up regarding him as her father, she'd be in for a nasty surprise. He had a terrible relationship with his father, so having the kid think him as her father worried him that they'd end up arguing and hating eachother as well.

But, he didn't know that that would happen. Anything could happen, so he shouldn't worry himself. Regardless, he still wasn't going to like it when she referred to him as her father or did anything father-daughter like with him.

He returned to his penthouse, where the worker was playing with the kid, and she smiled.

"So, what happened?" She asked, "I could tell by the look on your face something happened."

"She said her first word," He answered.

"You should be overjoyed!" She replied

"I would be, and am, but..." He grumbled.

"But what?" She asked.

"She called me 'dada'," He explained sadly, "I don't want her to think me as her father, when I'm not. If she does, that'll only break her heart more when I explain her heredity to her."

"Who are her parents, anyway?" She inquired.

"The Starweavers," He responded.

"The Starweavers? Surely they wouldn't be irresponsible enough to forget their own daughter!" She protested.

"They didn't forget her," He stated sadly.

"You aren't saying...?" She muttered, and he nodded sadly.

"They abandoned her. Left her in a dark alleyway with her birth certificate," He explained sadly.

The worker clenched her fists. "People evil enough to toss away their own daughter like a piece of garbage shouldn't be handling Time Pieces," She hissed, and Tim nodded angrily.

"Trust me, Christine, I agree entirely. That's why I'm going to revoke my support for them," He explained angrily.

"Well, now that you're back here, I should be going," Christine suggested, and then left. Tim then made himself a drink, then sat down next to the child. Raising her to adulthood was going to be a long, rocky road.

The next day, he did some errands, and one of his employees notified them that the Starweavers had returned from their latest odyssey, which he didn't know whether or not it would be a good thing.

The employee led Tim to them, and they were surprised to see him.

"Mr. Tim! What a wonderful surprise!" The woman said, and he simply sighed.

"Roger, Fiona, I must talk to you about something rather... serious," He muttered seriously, and the man, named Roger, raised an eyebrow.

"What's the matter?" He asked as Tim led them to a more secluded area.

"About a year ago, shortly after my promotion, I found a little girl in a dark alleyway and took it upon myself to raise her," He explained.

"That sounds most unlike you!" Fiona exclaimed, trying to keep the anxiety out of her voice.

"No, what sounds unlike _you_ is that you would abandon your own fricking daughter in an alleyway to die!" He yelled, causing the couple to step back.

"W-what do you mean?" Fiona asked anxiously, "That could have been a random girl born to drunkards! How do you know it's ours?"

He turned to the woman and stared coldly at her. "If you didn't abandon her, explain to me why she was laying on a birth certificate with the name 'Heather Harriet Starweaver' printed on it," He hissed.

No response.

"Okay, fine, you got us," Roger said annoyedly, "Now what do you want?"

"I want you to look me in the eye and tell me why you betrayed your own lovely little daughter," Tim demanded.

"L-look, the job of Timekeeper is a stressful, hardy one! We didn't have the time to deal with an annoying brat that just cries, sleeps, and eats! So, we abandoned her!" He explained, clearly distressed.

"You could've brought her to an adoption center. Given her to a relative or a friend to raise while you were off doing your job. But, no, you were so lazy and selfish you just left her like a piece of trash," Tim said tiredly, "You know what? I don't hate you for this. No, no, I was taught never to hate, as it only brings negativity into this world, unlike _you. _I pity you, because you no longer hold my support."

Fiona's eyes widened, and Roger huffed. "Fine, we don't need your support anyways. We'll get a High Counsellor to support us!" He hissed.

"I have already spoken to the High Council about young Heather and your heinous crime against her. If you think you will be able to win their support, it will be your word versus mine, and you already know how that will stack up," He said smugly, "So, good luck with that."

The two Time Lords stomped off, and Tim sighed. Perhaps Chronos isn't as pure as he had once thought.

He returned to his penthouse and made himself another drink.


	4. Chapter 3: Hatmaker

Chapter 3: Hatmaker

A few years passed without any major events, until the girl was five years old and ready to go to preschool. Tim saw her off as Christine drove her to the school. He wouldn't admit it, even to himself, but he was rather sad to see her leave.

Regardless, it was nice to not have to constantly deal with her, and now he had more time for his own work and time for himself. He left the building and left for the spaceport, where he would supervise how things were going, manage Time Piece inflow and outflow.

At the end of the day, he was returning home when he tripped over something, and looked down in annoyance to see what he had tripped over, and saw a ball of purple and yellow yarn.

He picked it up and examined it, and decided to keep it. When he returned to his penthouse, the kid was already waiting there and smiled to see him.

"How was your first day?" He asked her in a business-like tone.

"Not bad, I guess," She said casually. She had learned speech and grammar faster than the average child Time Lord had, and had already built up a good vocabulary.

"Well, I suppose that's better than what could've happened," Tim mumbled, and she tilted her head. "Did you make any friends?"

"No," She answered sadly.

"You're quite the character, I'm sure you'll find friends eventually," He told her, and she shrugged her shoulders. He then grabbed the ball of yarn from his pocket and began closely examining it, and she noticed.

"What's that?" She asked with childlike curiosity.

"A ball of yarn I tripped over," He answered, and the young girl thought of something and gasped.

"Can I try sewing something?" She asked excitedly, and Tim put a hand to his chin thoughtfully.

"Eh, I don't see why not," He muttered, then gave her the ball. She fumbled around for a sewing pin and found one, then began trying to sew something, but failed miserably and became frustrated.

He saw the girl's annoyance and sighed. He had experience in sewing, so decided to help her.

"Stop," He told her, then knelt down to her. "Let me show you how to do it." He then showed her how to properly hold the pin, and demonstrated slowly to her how she was supposed to do it.

She paid attention and learned quickly, then he gave her back the pin and yarn and watched her begin sewing something. After she mumbled out what she was going to make, she made a purple top hat with a yellow sash, and began jumping up and down excitedly.

"Did you see what I made?!" She asked her guardian, overjoyed, and he chuckled.

"Good work, kid. Perhaps you could become a seamstress," He said nonchalantly, and she grinned. He then smirked at her, remembering that in extremely rare cases, certain Time Lords could create magical hats. "Well, put it on!" He told her, and she did so.

She then closed her eyes, getting a feel for how the hat, well, felt, and a vision came into her mind. It showed her her school. She then gasped, and the hat fell off, causing the vision to vanish. Tim frowned.

"What happened?" He asked her with confusion.

"I-I dunno! I closed my eyes and it showed me my school!" She explained, just as confused, and Tim furrowed his brow, deep in thought.

"Wait. Put the hat back on and focus again, this time if it shows you something, don't panic," He advised her, and she did so, seeing a clear-as-day image of her school.

"It's showing me my school again," She said, and he grinned.

"How important is your school to you?" He asked her.

"Super important! I really wanna grow up to be something special, maybe even the next you!" She answered happily.

"Kid, you don't need to be a scholar to be something special," He explained to her, "You're already special. You're one of a kind."

She pouted. "Blah blah blah, yes I know I'm unique," She replied sassily.

"Not just that, kiddo. You're a Hatmaker," He stated amusedly.

"Huh?" She mumbled.

"Time for a little history lesson," He said contently, "A long time ago, a special wizard wanted to be able to use magic without having to go through the tiring trouble of conjuring and chanting spells, so he had an idea. He would infuse his magician's hat with magic and conjure it into a special ability so he wouldn't have to conjure a spell every single time he'd want that ability, just focus into the hat. He did so, and became the first Hatmaker. He tried teaching others the art, but they just couldn't channel the magic precisely enough to do so."

"So, I'm a wizard?" She asked.

"No, no, not necessarily," He responded, "Conjuring spells and sewing magic hats are two separate arts, they channel magic in entirely different ways. The wizard, who adopted the name Merlin, was the only Time Lord ever to exist that could do both. Eventually, he grew old and died, but his last breath he used to create an eternal spell, a blessing that he stated would choose a special person once in an eternity to be able to perform his marvelous art."

"I want you to try on my hat!" She said, and he chuckled.

"Okay, kiddo," He responded, then put on the hat, then focused. He thought something was wrong with the hat, because it showed him doing father-daughter activities with the kid. He put on a fake smile to cover his frown.

"What did it show you?" She asked him excitedly.

"Uh, the spaceport!" He lied, and her smile lessened.

"So, how rare are these 'hatmaker' people, anyway?" She asked, slightly bored, and he silently sighed with relief that she wasn't pressing him.

"Merlin grants his blessing once in millenia, odds are it will be another 10,000 years or more until another Time Lord recieves his blessing," He explained further.

"Wow! So, uh, are my parents hatmakers as well? Is it like that?" She asked, and he cringed.

"No, no. Your parents are... something else, I'll put it that way," He said strangely.

"Who are my parents, anyway?" She inquired, and he stared at her.

"You are not ready to learn about your parents. I will tell you when you are ready," He stated stubbornly.

"O-kay? I don't understand what about my parents could be worth keeping a secret, but whatever," She muttered in confusion, "Can you at least tell me my name?"

"Yeah, no. That isn't going to happen. I'll tell you your name when I tell you about your parents," He explained briskly, and she pouted.

"Fine! I'll just go by Hat Kid then," She shouted, and he smiled.

"The Great Hat Kid," He muttered to himself, and she tilted her head in confusion.

Hat Kid spent the rest of the night messing around with her newfound hat and dreaming about what other crazy things she could do. Hopefully, this newfound talent could help her actually make some friends at school.

**A/N: So, there you go. This is how I think Hat Kid got her 'name'. GalaxyExMinuet, that's good to hear! Glad to know people actually care about what a simple fool like me has to think about a simple little game like this.**


	5. Chapter 4: Heredity

Chapter 4: Heredity

A few more years had passed without any major events. Unfortunately, Hat Kid was not able to use her hat making talent to get friends at school, nobody really cared, and those that did simply poked fun at her about it. One day, she woke up and put on her top hat, which had become her pride and joy, got up, and ate breakfast.

After that, she talked to Tim, and Christine, who she had begun calling Aunt Christine to her amusement, took her to school. The majority of the day was the same old boring school stuff, she didn't find any of it interesting as it was all super easy to her.

However, when she returned to class after another lonely recess, something happened that she didn't necessarily appreciate.

"Okay, students, today we will be learning about parenthood," The teacher said with faked eagerness, and the _entire class_ turned to Hat Kid and stared at her, even the teacher, and some began snickering and others started making fun of her, and she began pouting quietly.

"Yes, I don't know my parents. So what?" She pouted, and the majority of the class began laughing.

"I don't think in all of our history we've seen a kid who doesn't know their parents!" Someone taunted, and people began laughing more. To make it worse, the teacher wasn't doing anything about it.

"What's it like, knowing you may be an orphan?" Someone else asked condescendingly.

Hat Kid began pouting further and just tried ignoring it. She knew this was the beginning of a series of torturous events for her.

Eventually, after what felt like an eternity, school was over and she went home. Both Tim and Christine were very busy so she had to walk home, nothing unusual there. When she got back to her guardian's penthouse, she saw his vehicle there and realized he must've been working from home.

She slowly entered into the penthouse, where her guardian was sitting at a holographic monitor doing who-knows-what, when he heard the door open and turned to see her enter.

"How was your day?" He asked her, too busy to really pay attention, and she just sighed and slowly walked to her room. He noticed this and raised an eyebrow. "Kid?" He asked again.

Tim, although he didn't even know it, was extremely concerned. Normally the kid was lively, jolly, and full of energy, but today she just seemed... hopeless and unnerved.

He quickly finished what he was doing and got up, and knocked on the kid's door.

"Kid? Something wrong?" He asked, and when no response came, he slowly opened the door. He wouldn't admit it, but the sight broke his heart.

The kid was sitting on her bed with her hat discarded on the floor, with her face in her hands, and he was pretty sure she was silently crying. He sat down next to her.

"What happened? You can tell me," He cooed, and she looked up annoyedly at him, tears streaming down her face.

"Why do _you _care?" She hissed, and he frowned. She then looked down sadly and sighed. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say that. I-it's just..." She mumbled hopelessly.

"No, kiddo, it's okay. You're distressed by something, I understand," He told her calmly, and she looked up at him again. "What happened?" He asked again.

"T-today, in class, w-we began learning about parenthood," She explained sadly, and he frowned. Judging by the fact that the kid still hadn't made any friends, he had an idea where this was going. "All throughout class, people weren't even paying attention to the lesson, 'class time' had turned into 'make fun of Hat Kid for not knowing her parents time'."

Tim sighed. "And this bothers you?" He asked her, and she nodded slowly.

"If they were poking fun at me for something else, like how I look, my hairstyle, or even my hat, I'd just roll my eyes and ignore it, or maybe think of something sassy to say back. B-but... my parents... it bothers me _so. Freaking. Much, _just because I know they're right and there's nothing I can do about it," She muttered distressfully.

"On a scale of 1-10, how much do you want to know about your parents?" He asked her again.

"219 billion," She answered, and he sighed again.

"Well, if it truly matters so much to you, and if it will help you at school..." He muttered, and she stared intently at him. "I think you're ready to learn your heredity. Come with me." She practically jumped off of her bed and grinned from ear to ear at him, which caused him to chuckle.

He led her down a hallway to a secluded storage room, and they entered it. He turned on the lights, and then fumbled around until he found a briefcase. He opened it, revealing her birth certificate. She tried grabbing it, but he closed the briefcase again, put it down, then he knelt down to her level and put his hand on her shoulder, causing her to tilt her head in confusion, as he practically never allowed for any sort of contact.

"Hattie," He said seriously, and she looked up at him. He only called her that when he really wanted her attention. "I want you to promise me something before I teach you this. Whatever you learn, I want you to promise me that you will never put yourself down or think lowly of yourself because of this."

She raised an eyebrow in confusion. "O-kay?" She said, clearly confused, and he stared at her.

"Promise me," He demanded, and she sighed.

"I promise," She said, and he smiled before opening the briefcase again. She slowly took the paper and read it out loud, gasping when she saw all of the new information.

"I'm a Starweaver?!" She asked excitedly, and Tim nodded sadly. She then stared up annoyedly at him. "Why did you keep this from me?!" She pouted.

"It's not your ancestry that I thought was worth keeping. It's what your parents did," He muttered sadly.

"What?" She said, clearly confused.

"You know how your parents are Timekeepers, correct?" He asked her, and she nodded. "Well, Timekeeper is a very demanding and stressful job, only meant for the elite. Your parents... didn't mean to have you, but went through with it."

"Uhhh, okay?" Was all the kid had to say.

"However, the stress of their jobs combined with the stress of raising a baby was too much for them, and in their panic, they decided..." He said, then stopped himself. How was he supposed to tell the kid this lightly?

"T-they decided to leave you," He said, and her eyes widened.

"Will they come back for me now that I'm older?" She asked, and Tim sighed sadly.

"No. They decided to completely abandon you," He explained.

"Why didn't they bring me to a friend or something?" She asked.

"They didn't want word getting out that they left their own daughter, so they decided the only way they could do so was to... t-to have you... die. So, they abandoned you in an alleyway with your birth certificate so they could completely forget about you and go on with their normal lives," He stated sadly, and she gasped, then began bawling.

"M-my own parents don't love me... and only want me dead," She said to herself, then began crying so loudly it made Tim cringe. He then realized something, and sighed. He didn't want to see her sad. He didn't want to ever see her suffer, and he didn't care anymore what anyone thought about that, not the kid, not himself, not anyone else.

So, he knelt down next to the kid and put his hand on her shoulder to comfort her, and she suddenly wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug, which made him fall back in surprise, but he returned the hug. She eventually calmed down and her crying reduced to slight sniffling.

"So, how did I come under your care?" She asked.

"Shortly after I was promoted to CEO of Time, I was walking out of the spaceport on my first tour as the role, but I heard a baby crying, so I stopped, and went into an alleyway where the crying was coming from, and I saw you, a baby Heather lying on the ground," He explained sadly, but warmly, "No one was around, so I decided to bring you here for the night so I could watch over you until I could bring you to an adoption center or orphanage, but no opportuniry came to do so, so I eventually decided to raise you permanently."

Hearing this made her begin crying again, and she hugged him again, and he slowly returned the hug again. He smiled at the girl, who buried her head in his shoulder.

"Thank you. For everything. You're the only dad I've ever had," She said through tears, and his eyes widened. He then took a deep breath and smiled.

"Well, kiddo, I've been avoiding it ever since I found you, but I realize it now," He told her, "You're _my_ daughter. Not theirs, not since they abandoned you. You're my daughter now, and you should never, ever see those pieces of trash as your parents. You understand?"

She nodded rapidly and they hugged again. He should've never thought that the kid thinking him as her father was a bad thing.


	6. Chapter 5: A Big Mistake

Chapter 5: A Big Mistake

**A/N: Unexpected soft and adorable part of the story, that last chapter was. Enjoy.**

After Tim showed Hat Kid who her parents were (He, and everyone who knew her, would still call her 'kid' or 'hat kid' or the like as it became a habit), she fell asleep and Tim put her to bed.

The following morning, she woke up abruptly and finally realized what job she wanted to be when she grew up. She got up and stumbled out of her bedroom and smiled at her guardian-turned-father.

"Morning, kiddo. How'd you sleep?" He asked her, and she yawned, which caused him to chuckle slightly. He saw the thoughtful look on her face and became intrigued. "What's on your mind?"

"I think I know what I wanna be," She muttered, and he raised an eyebrow.

"Oh really? What do you wanna be, then?" He inquired, and she grinned.

"A Timekeeper, just like my parents!" She said, and he cringed slightly.

"Any particular reason why?" He asked again.

"So I can impress my parents," She said, and he stared into her soul.

"What?" He said, and she realized she misspoke.

"I-I mean, so I can show them what I've become and make them try to feel some regret for abandoning me, possibly even turn them down if they ask to join me," She explained, and he grinned.

"That sounds better, kiddo. However, you don't necessarily need to be a grown up to be a Timekeeper," He explained, and she tilted her head in confusion. "Nowhere in our sacred laws does it state that Timekeepers need to be of a certain age, they just need to be exceptionally skilled, which I can already tell you that you are."

"Really?!" She shouted, and he grinned at her.

"I wouldn't lie to you, kid. You'd have to put in 110% though, as there's never been a child Timekeeper before," He warned her, and she grinned.

"I'd be glad to!" She said confidently, and he smiled.

"Well, good luck at school today, kiddo," He said to her, and she left.

Later, after school, some students gathered near Hat Kid to try to harrass her more, but she was prepared.

"Oh, look, it's the no-parent kid," One taunted, and she smirked, which confused them.

"Still searching aimlessly for them, are ya?" Another said condescendingly, and Hat Kid couldn't keep in her newfound information anymore.

"Nope, I've already found them," She said smugly, and everyone began whispering among themselves. "Y'all wanna know?"

"They're probably two poor servants or workers that nobody knows about or cares for," Someone else grumbled, and Hat Kid laughed.

"Oh, it's the opposite," She stated smugly, "My parents are none other than Roger and Fiona Starweaver."

"Liar," One suggested, "No way they would forget their own daughter,"

To show she wasn't lying, she foolishly decided to explain to them how she ended up being raised by Tim. "I wasn't forgotten. They abandoned me so I wouldn't get in their way," She explained further, and everyone became dead silent, and she smiled, knowing they now believed her.

She, however, didn't know that she basically just shot herself in the foot. "Wow, you're even more lame than we thought," Someone taunted, and the smile was wiped off of her face.

"As if not knowing your parents wasn't stupid enough," Another person muttered, and people began laughing.

"You must really be something awful if your own parents, especially your parents being _them_, didn't love you!" Someone else stated, and Hat Kid got extremely angry. This had not turned out how she wanted.

At this point, she had had enough of being taunted, made fun of, and being the laughing stock of the school. She pushed back at some people who got too close to her, but she just ended up pushing herself down.

At this point, everyone was laughing so hard she couldn't hear her own voice, and everyone literally began pushing her around. Eventually, someone heard all the commotion and came over. It was the school principal. He stomped over to the fiasco and looked down angrily at the group.

"What in the Universe is going on here?!" He shouted, and everyone stopped laughing. Now that everyone had stopped moving and laughing, he could clearly see what was happening. He saw her in the middle, on the ground, crying, and her hat tossed aside on the ground.

Somebody was about to speak up when he raised his hand to silence them.

"Nevermind, I think I have a _pretty good idea_ what happened here. It was bad enough that none of you could have the decency to leave her alone, as if her situation wasn't troubling enough for her," He hissed, "But getting physical? That's it! This is where I draw the line. I am going to see the school grounds put under constant supervision, and if I see anyone, and I mean _anyone _get near her and pick on her again, I swear to Chronos I will contact all of your parents about this, and they will _not_ be pleased!"

"B-but Mr. Faraday-" Someone pouted.

"'But'? 'But' nothing! This behaviour is completely unacceptable! You are meant to be role models, showing eachother compassion and kindness! This is the exact opposite! One more word and I will hold a meeting with all of the school staff and all of your parents about this!" He yelled, and nobody spoke up.

Slowly, everyone cleared except the principal and Hat Kid, who had slowly gotten up and put on her signature top hat.

"I will talk to your guardian about this matter and see what he thinks should be done," Was all the principal said to her, and she decided to return home before anything worse could possibly happen.

When she got back, again, Tim noticed Hat Kid's change in mood, but also saw how much more drastic it was this time and immediately got up.

"What happened?" He asked, and she just fell to her knees.

"I-I thought... If I explained everything to them... they'd understand and accept me," She explained desperately, "B-but... they just..."

It was all too much for her. Her parents, her school, her father figure, everything. The weight all came crashing down on her and she began bawling. He comforted her for the next 15 minutes, then thought of something.

If she wanted to become a Timekeeper, and she was getting attacked at school and they weren't really going to do anything about it...

"Well, kiddo, they aren't hearing your words," He said, causing her to look at him in confusion, "You need something louder than words, and you know what they say, actions speak louder than words."

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"If they aren't going to leave you alone, and if you also want to become a Timekeeper so badly, I might teach you self-defence," He explained, which made her eyes widen.

"Self-defence?" She mumbled, and he nodded.

"Timekeepers explore the cosmos for Time Pieces, and not all planets are friendly, so one of the major tests for Timekeeping is a test of combat," He stated, "If I teach you how to fight, you can defend yourself if all else fails and you'll also have one of the biggest parts of Timekeeping learned. Killing two birds with one stone."

"O-okay?" She said shakily, then he stood up and pulled her up.

"Get up, kiddo. We have some training to do."


	7. Chapter 6: Vertigo

Chapter 6: Vertigo

He took her somewhere where no one else on the planet had ever seen, his own spaceship. She wondered why they would need to be on a spaceship to train, but after quickly explaining to her his thought, she was led into a training room.

"This is where I used to train as a normal Timekeeper," He told her, which sparked her interest. He then knelt down to her. "Seeing how you're just a child, and I don't mean that in a bad way, you aren't going to be able to fight as most Timekeepers do, using brute strength, punches, kicks, or other unsophisticated methods. You're going to have to get creative," He explained.

"Creative how?" She asked.

"You'll have to think of other methods of attack. You could still block attacks with your arms if necessary, but I'm thinking if you want to be able to actually defend yourself without breaking your hands or feet I'm thinking you'll have to get a weapon, or use your entire body as a projectile, maybe both," He advised her.

"I-I can't use a _weapon_-" She protested.

"I don't mean like a sword or a spear, kiddo. I mean, like a plank of wood or something. Nothing... truly hurtful. Maybe even a parasol. However, talking isn't training, let's get started," He rambled.

For the next few hours, Hat Kid began learning how to fight and ways she could get around her small size to still be a one girl army. She learned that stomping was a, however crude, effective method of attack, how to collide into enemies midair like a cannonball, and learned weapon-to-weapon combat.

Tim was very impressed with how quickly the kid was learning how to fight, but she was still learning. He also saw a foreign kind of mercilessness she put into her attacks that seemed to make her fighting more fierce, and thus more effective. She'd need to spend a large amount of time practicing and learning before she'd truly be skilled enough to even have a chance of passing the High Council's trials.

After the hours had passed, they returned to the penthouse, tired, but for Hat Kid, relieved. She hadn't realized until then just how much anger she had pent up from recent events. He saw that she seemed better and smiled at her.

"Feeling better, kiddo?" He asked her.

"Actually, yeah, I am," She answered.

"If you're ever feeling angry about something, have something you need to just... let out, then train. It's proven to be relieving, the process even has a name: Catharsis," He explained, and she nodded.

Hat Kid then went to bed, and Tim sat down, but also fell asleep soon after.

When she woke up, she smiled at knowing she didn't have to go to school that day, as the planet's one true celebration day was among them: Coronation Day. (Obviously, it's not an actual coronation,) The day celebrated the gift of Time Pieces and when the first CEO was elected, just shy of a billion years ago.

She got up and basically sprinted out of her room, grinning like mad to her father figure.

"Happy Coronation Day, kiddo. What's your plans for the day?" He greeted her, and she grinned more.

"I'm gonna train some more, explore around, climb some thing to test myself, yada yada yada," She explained boringly, and he chuckled.

"Ok, kiddo, break a leg!" He told her, and she left.

She explored around the capital city in which she lived, talking to people she was acquainted with and watching the festivities. Eventually, she made it to the outskirts of the city and saw a giant cliff, the cliff that walled off that side of the city. She decided to climb it partly to train and for fun.

The first section of the cliff was rather easy for her, as there were large crags in the rock she could slide her hands and feet into, and the rock was solid. The next section of the cliff was more steep and there weren't as many crags, so it was more difficult. She didn't realized how high up she was getting.

She reached the third main section of the cliff, and began climbing, but the crags were tiny and the rock so unstable, she tried grabbing into a crag and it crumbled away. Just then, she looked down and saw how high up she was.

Normally, she wasn't afraid of heights, or falling, but here, she learned a definition of a word she'd heard before, but didn't comprehend: Vertigo.

She looked up quickly and saw the top of the cliff right there, just a few meters up. She reached up for another crag, and tugged down on it, and felt it hold. She climbed up more onto another crag, and kept going, finding the crags that held, and eventually climbed to the top.

When she clambered up to the top of the cliff, she felt so proud of herself she began jumping up and down with joy. Just for the heck of it, she decided to look down and see how far up she really was, and saw someone down at the bottom, looking up in shock. It was Christine.

"Heather Harriet Starweaver, get down here right now!" She ordered angrily, and her eyes widened. She'd never seen her get that angry before.

However, a sudden gust of wind came over the cliff, making her lean over forward, and the stone under her right foot crumbled away. Just then, she remembered something about that cliff that she hadn't really paid attention to.

She was told never, ever, _ever_ to try climbing it, and she learned very quickly just why exactly she was told that.


	8. Chapter 7: 'Celebration'

Chapter 7: 'Celebration'

**A/N: Something that, if you haven't learned yet, you will quickly learn, this prequel kind of like a series of unfortunate events, but with good events as well. You'll see an example of both in this chapter.**

Tim was sitting down, happily watching the news and Coronation Day 'celebrations' when someone almost literally bust through the doors distressfully, startling him.

"For the love of Chronos, don't scare me like that!" He hissed instantly, then saw who came through the doors.

"Tim, you need to come with me, _**NOW!**_" Christine barked, shocking him. He'd never seen her that distressed before.

"What happened?!" He asked her as he bolted after her.

"I don't have time to explain now, I'll explain when we get there," She said urgently, and they came to a hospital.

"Why are we at a hospital?" He asked her nervously, then thought of something. The one person she seemed to care about the most in the world was the kid, and he hadn't seen her throughout the whole day, and they're at a hospital.

His heart dropped.

"Tell me now, _what the hell happened?!_" He asked angrily, and they stopped.

"I-it's _her._ For reasons I don't know, she decided to try climbing the cliff and made it to the top, where I was lucky enough to spot her," She explained sadly, "I don't know what happened, but she looked down to see me and something caused her t-to fall over."

He went pale at hearing this. "She fell from the top of the cliff?!" He shouted, and she nodded in response. They entered the room, and he was saddened to see her lying in the bed, clearly in a state of pain, with her leg wrapped in a cast.

Hat Kid smiled weakly when she saw them enter the room, and Tim frowned. He didn't like seeing her look so... defeated. It seemed so unlike her. He thought of something to try to cheer her up a bit and grinned at her.

"Kid, when I said to break a leg, I didn't mean it _literally_," He told her amusingly, and she giggled. "Care to explain to me why you climbed the cliff?"

"I-I thought it'd be fun, and be a good way to train myself," She explained tiredly.

"I thought I told you a _billion times _not to climb it, because it crumbles near the top," He told her in a state of paternal irritation.

"With everything going on, I didn't remember," She replied, and he sighed.

"Well, think a little harder next time, please," He advised her, and she nodded slowly, then giggled again.

"I definitely wasn't expecting to celebrate Coronation Day like this," She said amusedly, and he chuckled.

"There's always next year, kiddo. Don't bring yourself down," He told her, and she nodded. "I do have to say though, climbing all the way to the peak of the cliff without falling along the way? Impressive! Very impressive! I don't think many other people have completed such a feat!"

"Really?" She asked happily, and he nodded with a grin. "Wow! That'll sure help me become a Timekeeper, right?"

"Sure, kiddo," He answered.

They stuck around for awhile after that, to try and cheer Hat Kid up, until she fell asleep and they had to leave. They kept visiting her for around two weeks until her leg was healed enough for her to use crutches, and was allowed to return home.

After staying in that bland, boring hospital for two weeks, she was very relieved to be back home and be able to sleep in her own room. Christine stayed the whole day when she was back and cooked for them to welcome her back, as she did know how to cook well, and cook well she did.

The next day, she was to go back to school, which did not please her. At least she was going to be protected somewhat by the school. She got up, sighing to see the crutches next to her bed, and slowly went out into the main room, where Tim was waiting and frowned to see her miserable.

"Even with... recent events, I hope you have a good day of school, kiddo," He told her, and she nodded. She quickly ate and left, and when she went into the school, people were confused to see her on crutches.

She could hear people whispering and murmuring about what could've happened and she sighed. First day back and she was already the main topic of the school. However, no one bothered her.

After the school day, which she was happy to see was peaceful, she talked to her teacher about what happened, and that she'd need time and help to catch up. The teacher understood and offered to help, and she stayed an extra hour to get caught up on her work.

Her teacher was impressed at how quickly she got caught up on her work, she literally got all of it done in the hour. Before she left, he stopped her.

"Hey, kid!" He called out to her, and she turned to him, confused. "You're excelling in the class, you have the top mark, you literally have a perfect score, you should consider moving up a few classes," He advised her, and she nodded.

"I was considering it, if you really think so, I'll talk to Tim about it," She told the teacher, who nodded, then she left and returned, a smile on her face.

He was relieved to see her happy when she came in through the door, and he immediately knew he had to ask her about her day.

"How was your day, kiddo?" He asked her happily, and she grinned.

"Amazing!" She answered joyfully.

"You make some friends?" He asked her again.

"No, no," She replied, "Nobody picked on me for once, and my teacher helped me get caught up!"

"Ok, how much homework do you have?" He asked again.

"None!" She responded braggingly, and he stared disapprovingly at her.

"Kid, don't lie to me. You shouldn't betray my trust," He scolded her, and she frowned annoyedly.

"I'm not lying! If you really wanted to, you could ask my teacher!" She pouted, "He even said I'm doing so well I should move up a bit in school!"

"Really?" He muttered.

"Yeah!" She beamed.

"I always knew you were capable, kiddo. I'll talk to the principal about it," He told her, and she grinned from ear to ear. Little did he know that she wouldn't just be 'moving up a bit'.


	9. Chapter 8: Scholar

Chapter 8: Scholar

The next day, Tim talked to the school principal about Hat Kid moving up a few grades and she did so, in fact, she did so well they moved her up even more until she was in the final class the school taught.

She stayed in that class for the rest of the school year, and was about to go for her first day of secondary school.

She ran out of her room and grinned at her father figure, who grinned as well. She then got ready for school, eating breakfast and whatnot, and Tim chuckled.

"Well, kiddo, I certainly didn't expect this big of a jump," He told her contently.

"Me neither!" She muttered happily.

"Either way, have a good day, kid," He said, and she smiled, then left for school. The new school she was going to was a bit further away than her old school, but it didn't matter to her.

When she got to the school, she took a deep breath. She was excited to be already going to this high a level of education, but was also nervous, as she was obviously the youngest student in the school.

She walked through the door and saw the absolute chaos of the place. Students quite a bit older than her were lounging around everywhere, chatting and mingling, some flirting, others 'fighting', and more.

She stared in awe at it all. It was definitely a new environment for her, and people started noticing her and became confused.

"Who's the kid?" Someone asked.

Another person called out to her: "Didja get lost, kiddo?"

All eyes were on her, and she knew she couldn't let her be the laughingstock of this school as well. She gave them an annoyed glare and rolled her eyes.

"I'm not lost. Clearly you haven't heard. I'm a new student here, as I excelled in all of my other classes and was moved up until I got to here," She explained annoyedly, and people began chatting among themselves again.

"Nah, that can't be true," Someone muttered.

"It is. Have you not heard of me?" She hissed, "I'm the CEO of Time's adoptive daughter, aspiring scholar, and talented seamstress. Now, I need you all to get off my case so I can go to my locker." Hearing this, people slowly turned from her and resumed their normal activities, and she went to her assigned locker.

The rest of the day went by smoothly, the classes actually seemed to be near her intelligence level for once, and thus didn't bore her. During breaks and lunch and after school, she talked to people who were curious about how and why she was here, and for once people seemed to _actually _respect her somewhat.

She returned home after school, a smile on her face, and greeted her adoptive father.

"Good day?" He asked.

"Yep! I feel like for once in my life, people actually respect me, I was kind of interrogated at the start of the day but I tried a new tactic and they left me alone," She explained happily.

"What 'new tactic' would that be?" He inquired.

"I basically showed them who's boss, instead of being more timid and shy I made sure they knew exactly who they were dealing with," She explained smugly.

"Good for you, kiddo, just don't let it get to your head," He advised, and she nodded. She spent the rest of the night doing homework, drawing, and just randomly playing around like a little girl would do.

The rest of the week went just as smoothly for her, and on the weekend she trained with Tim. She basically followed this cycle through the rest of secondary school, studying and training, and to impress people and advance quicker, she took more and more work at once, until she was completing classes much quicker than her classmates.

With all this going on, and her frequent demonstrations of acrobatic skills at lunchtimes, she quickly became the celebrity of the school, people wanted to work with her so they could help them with work, she was constantly the topic of the school, and nobody bothered her, at all.

That didn't mean she didn't get enemies, though. One day, she was doing her typical demonstrations of acrobatic skill at lunch, but she saw a group of people at the back, and one pointed at her and the group laughed.

She didn't like this and immediately stopped and stomped over to them.

"Hey! Don't think you can just go say something about me and I won't notice," She shouted, and the person who pointed at her turned to her with a look of irritation on his face.

"Pfft. What are you gonna do about it, tell on me?" The person mocked, and she stared at him.

"Oh, please, don't make me laugh. I'll let you go this one time, but if I catch you doing something like this again, I promise you, I'll make you regret it," She hissed, then stomped away.

That one student basically became her archenemy throughout school, but with her celebrity-like status, he never really risked doing anything major against her, and no major events came up throughout school.

Tim was proud of the kid for how quickly she was advancing throughout school, what normally took students 5-6 years to complete, she was doing in 1, and doing extremely well. The school quickly began bragging to other schools about her, which boosted her self-esteem which had nearly shattered from her old school experiences.

With all these events, she quickly became somewhat egotistical and smug, but, sadly, she still didn't have anyone she would consider friends, just study groups and semi-acquaintances.

She really had become quite the scholar.

**A/N: A bit of a shorter chapter again, I know, but I did say chapters would be shorter, so don't be surprised. This just seemed like the best spot to end the chapter, as I'm planning a big event for Hat Kid next chapter.**


	10. Chapter 9: Friends In Low Places

Chapter 9: Friends In Low Places

Hat Kid closed her locker with joy. Today was her last day of school, and she was done her final exams. She knew she was going to pass everything, as her marks were stellar, so she wasn't worried about them. When she looked around, her archenemy was waiting for her.

"Oh, look, it's the spoiled brat," He muttered.

"What do you want?" She asked irritably.

"So, you're going to be leaving here soon? Good riddance," He stated.

"What. Do. You. Want?" She asked slowly. She didn't have time for stupidity.

"Oh, you have nothing to say about me making fun of you? You've always been a pushover," He mocked.

"That's rich, coming from _you,_" Hat Kid hissed, and he stared daggers at her.

"Arrogant, egotistical, spoiled, brat! That is all you are! You really need to learn your place!" He yelled at her, then took a step toward her. "I'm much older than your ugly mug, you should be treating me as such!"

"If that's so, you should be acting as a role model and not as a lying, cheating, pathetic excuse of a person," She told him.

"What would you know about discipline and being a role model? Well, I guess if nobody is going to teach you discipline, I'll have to do it myself!" He yelled, hands balled into fists, then took another step toward her. She immediately knew this was a threat and stepped back, taking a defensive stance.

"Come any closer and I will discipline **you!**" She threatened, and he tried swatting at her, but she dashed back, and he tripped and fell. Well, she certainly wasn't expecting her combat skills to be put to the test so soon. He quickly got up and tried swatting at her again, but she jumped behind him and whacked him in the head with her textbook, hard.

He fell forward, and she jumped onto him and pinned him down toward the ground, when a teacher came out to see what the commotion was all about and saw the scene.

"What in the Universe is going on here?!" She shouted, and Hat Kid turned to her and pointed down at her defeated enemy beneath her.

"He attacked me!" She confessed, and the teacher stomped over and Hat Kid jumped off, and the surprised student got up slowly and put his hand to the back of his head.

"If I knew you could fight I might not have made fun of you that day," He mumbled, and the teacher became very, very angry.

"Come with me, **now!** Your parents will be contacted about this!" She screamed, and he reluctantly followed the angered teacher. A couple of minutes later, the school principal came down to see if she was alright.

After she quickly explained the event to him, which baffled him how a little girl could pin down a teenager, he sighed and left.

Hat Kid quickly returned home as well before anything else could happen. When she got home, Christine was there as well as Tim. Tim noticed her slightly rough shape and raised an eyebrow.

"Uhh, kid?" He said, and Hat Kid smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of her head.

"Did something happen?" Christine asked, and Hat Kid frowned.

"You know how there was that one jerk back at the school who became my archnemesis?" She asked them, and they both nodded slowly. "Well, I don't know what got into him but he taunted me after school today, and when I taunted him back he attacked me!"

"Oh for the love of..." Tim mumbled furiously.

"By Chronos, are you alright?!" Christine asked, extremely concerned.

"Yeah, fine. To show him who's boss, I whacked him in the back of the head with my textbook and pinned him to the ground before a teacher arrived," She explained nonchalantly, and Tim smiled.

"That's my girl. Guess now we know that combat training wasn't for nothing, eh?" He asked her contently, and she giggled and nodded.

"I'm gonna go play video games," She told the adults, who nodded, then she bolted into her room and did just that, playing all sorts of video games, including her favourite game about a dog on a farm, for hours, until dinner, then she spent the rest of the night preparing for graduation day the next day.

She went to bed with a smile on her face and excitement about graduation in her mind.

The next day, she got ready for the graduation ceremony, putting on her comically oversized graduation garb, which was a sky blue robe and glowing sky-blue halo, which meant she couldn't wear her top hat, which annoyed her, but she was fine with it, as it was a big, BIG day.

The majority of the ceremony was a typical, boring graduation ceremony, nothing truly worth noting, until it was time to hand out their graduation certificates (Obviously their version of our diplomas), and the principal began calling up names to recieve them.

There were different amounts of cheers for different people than went up, and she sympathized with and felt sorry for the small amount of people who recieved little to no cheer.

Although she was excited to recieve her certificate, she was also kind of sad. She wasn't going to be surprised if she herself got no cheer, as she never made any friends in her new school either. Yes, she made study groups and impressed people with her acrobatics, but that wasn't making friends.

She was beginning to daydream and zone out when the principal called out a name.

"Heather Harriet Starweaver."

Hearing the principal say this, she sighed and got up, and to her upmost surprise, the entire building was shaken with noise as practically the whole school began shouting and cheering for her.

She fought hard, and failed, to hold back tears as she walked up to the podium, grinning from ear to ear, and she grabbed her certificate. She then made her way back to her seat, and when she sat down, she was immediately congratulated by those sitting near her, and she smiled and thanked them all.

That day was one of the best days of her life, if not the best.

The rest of the ceremony went by as usual, until it ended, and she ran up to Tim, who locked her into a hug.

"See, I told you you'd make friends, kiddo," He told her, "Even if you didn't even know or believe it."

She hugged her father figure more, and then they left. Now that she was graduated from secondary school with near-perfect marks, she could legally have a chance of becoming a Timekeeper. She'd still struggle if she wanted to become one, but...

She'd always have friends in low places.


	11. Chapter 10: Surprise

Chapter 10: Surprise

After her graduation, Hat Kid decided to stop school for a little while before she would try going for adult-level schooling. The principal of a very prestigious university had already invited her to join the school.

During this time period of little to no schooling, Hat Kid trained very, _very _hard, and when she wasn't training, just messed around like you'd expect a normal little girl to do. She continued this until her 11th birthday, when something very special happened.

As what normally happened on her birthdays, she woke up to Christine making her breakfast in bed, which she enjoyed, and when she got up afterward, she talked to Tim, who wished her a happy birthday, then she left to mess around and train, but to her surprise, some people around the city recognized her and wished her a happy birthday as well.

She continued playing around and having fun until the afternoon, when she returned home.

When she entered the building, it was pitch black. She quickly became confused and tilted her head.

"Hello?" She greeted the darkness, and the lights were flicked on and she was greeted with a surprise birthday party, which overjoyed her. Not too differently from her previous birthdays, nobody really showed up, but there were some people she recognized around, which made her happy.

For the next few hours, she talked to people, ate junk food, what you'd expect someone to do at a birthday party, until it was time for her to open gifts. Those who showed up didn't really bring anything, but she was fine with it.

She opened her gift from Christine, which was a fake Time Piece lamp, which she absolutely loved, but then it was time for Tim's gift.

No gift box was brought out, and he just sat there uncomfortably, and she frowned.

"You didn't forget your own daughter's birthday gift, did you?" She asked him humorously, and he chuckled.

"Oh, no, kiddo. I didn't forget it," He answered contently, "Your gift isn't a physical object, so how could I wrap it?"

She gave him a confused glare.

"What is it, then?" She inquired, and he grinned from ear to ear at her. He seemed really proud of himself for her gift, whatever the heck it was.

"I wont sugarcoat it or anything," He told her, "I talked to the High Council,"

"Uh huh?" Hat Kid muttered,

He finished with emphasis: "In two weeks time, you shall appear before them, and you will convince them to make you a Timekeeper."

Her jaw dropped. Did she just hallucinate? No, she probably just misheard.

"I-I'm going to... Appear before... The Council itself... In two weeks... To become a Timekeeper?" She said in pure shock, and he nodded.

She nearly fainted from the state of pure ecstasy she was in. She sat down, then when she didn't feel dizzy anymore, she jumped toward her father figure and gave him one of the hardest hugs of all Time.

"The High Council are tough negotiators, you'll really have to stun them to succeed, but I'm sure you can do it, kiddo. You've already stunned hundreds of other people," He explained, and she giggled.

She eventually calmed down and resumed her birthday activities, until the small amount of people who were there left and it was just Tim, Christine, and Hat Kid.

"Well, gee, way to make my gift look bad," Christine said humorously, and Tim chuckled. Then, Hat Kid hugged Christine.

"I still love your gift! Thank you, both of you, really, I appreciate it so much," She said, then let go.

"Well, kiddo, you should probably start practicing what you're gonna say to them, two weeks are gonna fly by fast," Tim advised Hat Kid, and she nodded rapidly.

Indeed, the two weeks did fly by fast as Hat Kid basically spent every waking hour reciting her 'speech' and practicing with Tim. He was basically acting as the Council, and his lack of emotion and stubborness made Hat Kid feel somewhat... odd. Even before they had their bonding moment, he didn't act that... cold and calculating.

Regardless, because of all her practice, she was able to recite her speech impeccably, and she impressed Tim, it actually surprised him how well her speech was and how perfectly she could memorize and recite it.

Finally, the day came where she was to appear before the High Council. She was extremely nervous, but she knew it was just natural, and she knew she was ready. Tim drove her to the Citadel (Their version of both the White House and the Pentagon), and she stepped out.

Not very many people were there, as Council meetings were mostly closed off to the public, but a small amount of journalists and whatnot were there. She slowly walked toward the building, putting on the best game face she had, and she walked through the giant double doors of the building and stepped into the center of a large room with a large, half-circular table in front of her, with 11 people sitting down across it.

The person in the center, the one who would decide for the Council if they could not come to a conclusion, spoke out.

"Heather Harriet Starweaver, biological daughter of Roger and Fiona Starweaver and adoptive daughter of Tim, the CEO of Time himself, you are here to convince us to promote you to Timekeeper, are you not?" The old, white haired Time Lord asked.

"Indeed, I am here for that purpose. I have prepared a speech to help with proving my point," Hat Kid explained professionally.

"Very well, begin," The Councellor ordered.

"The Timekeepers are an elite task force designed for searching, retrieving, and handling of Time Pieces, this, ladies and gentlemen, you know very well. As you all know, there are very many different restrictions and challenges an aspiring Timekeeper must face and overcome, but, nowhere in our laws does it state that age is one of them. I may be young, but I have studied and trained all my life for this, and not only I, but everyone I know believes I am capable for the task," She explained formally, and some of the councellors shifted in their seats, intrigued.

"I graduated secondary school in under a year, I was the top student of my school, and although my size and stature may say otherwise, I know how to fight very well, when I was attacked before my graduation, I was able to overcome the attacker in seconds," She explained further, "I have the intellect, the talent, the know-how, and the will to become a Timekeeper. Thus, I see no reason why you should _not_ make me a Timekeeper."

"That may be true, but what is your motive for wanting such a prestigious role? Do you wish to take after your parents?" The central Councellor asked.

"On the contrary, sir. I simply want their success, other than that I wish to have no contact or similarities to them," She explained, drowning the irritation out of her voice.

"Hmm, I see," The Councellor muttered, then the councellor to his left shifted and looked down at the girl.

"Indeed, there are no laws prohibiting children from becoming Timekeepers, but children are prone to making poor decisions and being incompetent. Thus, why would we elect a child to be a Timekeeper?" They asked condescendingly.

"I am no _ordinary child,_ sir. I know what I am capable of, and I know right from wrong. If I were an ordinary child, I would not have come anywhere near this close to success, at least, not for another two decades or more," Hat Kid explained, and the councellor said nothing, but the look on his face showed he was not truly convinced.

"That will be enough, Starweaver. Is the Council ready to make a decision?" The central Councellor stated, and the rest of the Council nodded.

Butterflies were beginning to fly in Hat Kid's stomach, as 10 trays with a deep sea-blue candle and a blood red candle on each of them were brought in and given to each person, who hid their tray and discreetly lit a candle. Blue candle meant an agreement, red meant disagreement. She waited for what felt like an eternity for their votes to come in, and each councellor put their tray up.

Five had a blue flame, five had a red flame. One of the councellors, who had a blue flame, grumbled and spoke up.

"The girl is correct. Age is just a number, we should not let our stereotypes and prejudices get in the way of justice and truth," They hissed.

"This is not about ageism and prejudice. This is about safety and not taking risks. She is clearly a talented and clever young girl, but she is still just that, a young girl. There is a reason why there have been no youth Timekeepers in the past, we should respect that and keep it that way," Another councellor advised.

"That would be true with any child, but like both you and she said, she is no ordinary child. I feel she has what it takes to be an excellent Timekeeper," Yet another Councellor stated.

To Hat Kid's dismay, the dispute did not come to an end, it kept getting larger and larger, as well as more heated, until they were practically talking over eachother. The central councellor, who could not partake in the discussion, had lost his patience. He picked up a hammer and slammed it down, hard, against the table, creating a loud _bang._

"**Enough!** The Council cannot come to a conclusion, thus it shall be concluded by me," He hissed, and a golden tray with the same candles was brought to him. Hat Kid was about to have a nervous breakdown, but she kept herself together. If she showed any, _**ANY**_ signs of weakness to the Council, they'd reject her.

The lead Councellor picked up a small torch, and he held it out toward the center of the tray. He then took a deep breath and pointed it toward a candle.


	12. Chapter 11: Yield

Chapter 11: Yield

**A/N: Yep, a cliffhanger. Did you really expect such a major event not to be left off on a cliffhanger? If you did, (ahem,) **_**FOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL! **_**Unfortunately, I will have to split this into two parts. Sorry.**

The torch halted before it could ignite the red torch, making Hat Kid even more anxious, and the Councellor put his free hand to his chin thoughtfully. After a couple of minutes, he motioned the torch again, and a torch ignited, cascading the room in a coloured light.

Blue.

That now meant 6 votes for Hat Kid and 5 votes against her. She blinked rapidly.

"Very well, Starweaver. You have proven your point. We should not let prejudice and stereotypes get in the way of doing what is right. In a month's time, you shall reappear here for the Trials of Time," The white haired lead counsellor told her, and she nodded. "You may now leave."

She bowed to the Council gratefully and took her leave, and when she stepped outside the building, she screamed in joy and began jumping up and down, causing a waiting Tim to be startled, then chuckle.

"I knew you had it in you, kid. I told you that you were something special," He told her, "Not only are you one of the youngest Hatmakers ever, you're also going to become _the _youngest Timekeeper to _**ever exist!**_"

Hat Kid was so excited she couldn't think straight. All of her thought were about her new success, and on the ride home she couldn't sit still. However, she knew that for the Trials she wouldn't be able to appear in her normal clothes, that would be a dishonour to the Council, the planet, the Timekeepers, and even Chronos himself.

The month between her appearance to the Council and the ceremony were a joyful and exciting time for Hat Kid, as people had heard of her presenting to the Council about her becoming a Timekeeper, and the Council's decision to go with it, so Hat Kid quickly became well known across the whole planet, and whenever she went anywhere, people would greet her and congratulate her, some even cheering her on.

This was what she'd always wanted, other than her old wish of knowing who her parents were. Because of her sudden attention, she went out more, however, always accompanied by either Tim or Christine, because who knows what could happen.

She was also on the news, which pleased her and her foster family. After nearly a month of excitement and joy, she had to prepare for her big, big day. They had already recieved a custom made ceremonial outfit for her to wear, along with other miscellaneous items in case she decided to go for different styles, but she still needed to get prepared, so Christine took her to a salon.

The woman at the front desk immediately noticed them and who they were, and smiled.

"Oh, look! It's the most special girl in the world!" She greeted them happily, and Hat Kid blushed and smiled before shyly waving to her. Christine knew the people at this salon pretty well, and they had an appointment made, so Hat Kid got in quickly and was seated down.

"So, what can we do for you, sweetie?" The woman asked warmly, and Hat Kid grinned before explaining that she wanted her nails painted with different glowing colours, her hair to be weaved into a dual helix with tiny fake Time Pieces wrapped around the ends, and a green lipstick. Other than that, she also requested what a woman would normally come to a salon for, mascara, other miscellaneous makeup, and whatnot. (I'm not a woman, what would I know about them?)

While this was all happening, she talked to the ladies about her ambitions and how overjoyed she was about the events about to take place, and they supported her fully. At the end of it all, she looked into the mirror and gasped at how she looked.

She didn't know how others would see her, but to her? She looked absolutely dazzling.

"Wow! If I look this good, maybe I should become a model in my spare time!" Hat Kid suggested jokingly, and everyone laughed with her.

"Well, darling, no matter what you do, you'll have our full cheers and wishes throughout the way. Come back here any time you need to be done up, it's on the house," The one woman said, and Hat Kid smiled further. She never expected to become this popular.

She returned home with Christine stealthily, as she didn't want anyone to see her in her makeup before the ceremony except Tim and Christine, and to her contentment, nobody saw them.

When they entered the penthouse, Tim noticed them and raised an eyebrow. Hat Kid's heart dropped, as she thought Tim didn't like it.

"What do you think?" She asked him light-heartedly, and he smiled.

"You look great, kiddo. You'll really entrance the audiences at your ceremony," He told her, and she smiled.

She ran into her bedroom and quickly changed into her ceremonial garb, then she went into the bathroom and looked at herself. She already knew she looked good just with the makeup, but with the ceremonial clothes on as well, she literally couldn't stop looking at herself, as narcissistic as that may seem.

The ceremonial clothes were a short, brown leather shirt and dark green, elegantly crafted shorts, some multicoloured bracelets, and some rings of cloth wrapped around her arm with medium length ribbons hanging down from them with glowing multicoloured orbs on.

She snapped out of her enchantment and walked out into the main room, and the two adults she knew and loved so much grinned to see her.

"Okay, _now_ how do I look?" She asked them.

"Words can't describe how amazing you look," Christine stated, and she blushed.

"Okay, don't exaggerate," She muttered, and Tim chuckled.

"She isn't exaggerating, kiddo. You really look stellar," He told her, and she smiled warmly. Suddenly, Tim checked the time and his three eyes widened. "We really need to get going."

They went down to where Tim's vehicle was parked and climbed inside, and they took off toward the Citadel, getting there quickly, with Hat Kid slinking down along the way to avoid the gaze of people.

Eventually, they stopped in front of the giant, epic building, and Hat Kid took a deep breath before stepping out slowly, where, to her surprise, a red carpet was waiting. Along the sides of the carpet, guards were lined to keep gargantuan amounts of people back, who gasped, then began cheering as they saw her.

Knowing she had to remain emotionless, she controlled herself and barely reacted, one might assume she didn't even notice them. She slowly and professionally walked along the red carpet before walking inside the building, where, along with the Council waiting at their table, there were also thousands of people sat along the upper, outer level of the room.

She breathed deeply and advanced toward the Council, then stopped in the center of the room, then knelt down on her left knee, placing her right fist to the ground and looking down to the ground.

"Heather Harriet Starweaver, you are here today to take a role not many take, a difficult and arduous, yet highly honoured, respected, and prestigious role, correct?" The lead Councellor asked formally.

Knowing what to say, she nodded. "That is correct," She said emotionlessly.

"Timekeeper is a role sealed in blood, one in which you are only relieved of your duty by death, and thus the Timekeeper trials are extremely dangerous. Are you absolutely certain you wish to proceed?" He inquired.

"I would rather die than fail here," Hat Kid stated stubbornly.

"Very well. You shall be tested with a series of three ceremonial trials, a trial of strength, a trial of intellect, and a trial of will. Failure in any of these trials is not an option, as if you do fail, then you shall either leave this building in an ambulance or a casket," The Councellor warned, and Hat Kid took a deep breath.

She would _not _be embarrassed again.

"Are you prepared?" He asked.

"More than anyone," She answered confidently, and the councellor nodded. Hat Kid rose as the councellor summoned what seemed to be a soldier holding a double handed sword.

"For the Trial of Strength, you shall face one of our finest soldiers in combat, until a combatant yields or dies," The councellor explained, and the soldier looked down coldly at Hat Kid and scowled at her. Kid or not, this guy was going to do his job.

"Without further ado, **let the trials... **_**BEGIN!**_" The old Councellor yelled as ambient music began to play in the background. The soldier ran toward Hat Kid, who sidestepped out of the way and tripped him. He grumbled and got up quickly, then swung his sword out at Hat Kid, who jumped back, barely dodging the sharpened metal blade.

Seeing how the large, double handed claymore was not doing him well, he sheathed it and pulled out dual blades, making Hat Kid raise an eyebrow. He then proceeded to swing them around rapidly in her direction, and she dodged the flurry of metal before it lessened and she kicked him in the face, knocking him back.

The soldier felt a bruise appear on his face and became more aggravated, then charged toward the girl, who jumped over him and dove into him like a cannonball, punting him back. He wasn't done just yet, however. This was a top class soldier, he wasn't gonna go down without an epic battle.

He tried a new tactic, predicting where the child would move, which caught her off guard, and one of the blades just barely cut into her side, causing her to hiss out in pain. But, she pushed it aside and kept fighting. She'd been waiting all her life for this, she, also, wasn't going to go down without a fight.

Eventually, Hat Kid saw a broken piece of metal laying off to the side and she dashed towards it, then picked it up. Now she had a weapon as well. She began clashing weapon to weapon with the soldier, but the soldier was more competent and knocked the broken piece of metal out of her hand, then hit her in the face with one of the swords' handles, knocking her down to the ground.

She remembered what she had said earlier, and planned to act on it. She'd rather die than surrender, and the soldier chuckled at her.

"Yield, now. I don't feel like murdering a child," He advised her, and she snickered.

"Never," She hissed.

"Hmph. Fine, your funeral, literally," The soldier taunted, then brung his swords down for a killing blow, but Hat Kid dove beneath the soldier and tripped him, catching him completely off guard, so much so he faceplanted to the ground and dropped all of his weapons. He turned face-up as Hat Kid picked up a blade and jumped on him, pointing the edge of the blade toward his throat.

Both were exhausted from the battle, and panting heavily. Hat Kid wasn't done yet, though.

"Now, it's your turn. Yield," She ordered the soldier.

"I would rather die than live with the embarrassment of yielding to a _child!_" He yelled stubbornly.

"You have fought well. There is nothing for you to be ashamed of. Yield!" She shouted, "Like they said, you're a top soldier, your colleagues need you!" The soldier didn't listen and tried throwing Hat Kid off of him, but she predicted this and bashed him in the face.

"_**YIELD, you fool!**_" She screamed at the top of her lungs, and he took a deep breath, then raised his arms up and put his fist into his elbow, signalling defeat. She jumped off of the defeated soldier, who slowly got up and was guided away.

"You show compassion, Starweaver. That is one of the greatest qualities a Timekeeper can have, but also one of the worst if they are not cautious. Do not be too trusting," The lead Councellor advised, "However, you passed the first trial excellently, but you are not done yet. The Trial of Intellect awaits."

Hat Kid was guided into a chamber, with cameras dotted throughout the room to record her. The door to the chamber was locked behind her, and when she studied the room, she saw that a very difficult puzzle awaited her.

However, with Tim's advisement, she had practiced a lot of puzzles in her spare time, and she recognized the puzzle holding the lock down. There was a series of strange floor tiles from wall to wall leading to a button, and Hat Kid suspected something.

She got down to hands and feet and dropped something on one of the tiles, and it sunk down, and right above her head, a laser shot out from the wall, alarming her. She then scrutinized the floor panels to see what they were about, and saw a strange letter engraved into each of them, each tile engraved differently. She looked around near the puzzle and saw a sign on the wall, and walked toward it, then read it.

_Your destination will guide you through the journey._

Destination? What did that mean? She thought about it for a few minutes, then realized something. They couldn't read her mind, so they couldn't truly know what her destination was, they could just predict. However, they did know she wanted to be a Timekeeper. That's probably what it meant.

She scrutinized the letters of the pressure plates more closely and recognized the lexicon. She was taught it in school. She mostly remembered the translations of the letters, and thought of something.

It wants her to spell Time.

She recognized the symbol for the letter T and jumped on it, and it fell down, then released a cloud of smoke, but no lasers came out, so it must be right. She then saw the symbol for the letter I, and stepped on it, but no smoke came out when it fell down, and she quickly jumped back onto the other pressure plate before a laser shot out from the wall.

Okay, it's capital sensitive.

She saw the symbol for the lowercase I and stepped on it, and the plate released a puff of smoke, so it was good.

She had not realized she was taking a rather long time, and above her head, a beep played out, and she saw a timer with 1:00 appear on the roof, which began counting down. Knowing the danger of the trials, she knew something really bad would happen if that went down to 0, so she quickly searched for the lowercase letter M, and jumped onto it, and it released another puff of smoke.

However...

For some reason, she didn't remember the letter E in the lexicon. She pulled on her hair in anger and searched for the one that made the most sense, and stepped on it. To her anxiety, it didn't release a puff of smoke, and she jumped back before another laser shot out. Time was running out. She didn't even have time to search for another letter, she just saw the plate next to her and stepped on it, and it released a puff of smoke.

She bolted toward the button and slammed it, causing another, calmer beep to play out, and all the pressure plates sunk down, and the timer deactivated. She took a deep breath, then walked over to the door, and sure enough, it opened.

She walked back in front of the Council, who seemed to be intrigued by her results.

"Quite a lucky guess, there. Let us hope you do not need to rely on luck again," The lead Councellor stated with a hint of amusement, "You (barely) passed the Trial of Intellect, perhaps you should have memorized the Ancient Dialect more. No matter, moving on to the final trial, the Trial of Endurance."

Hat Kid gulped. She was warned that the Trial of Endurance was the hardest one of all, and that no matter who you are, it was nasty and painful.

"The Trial of Endurance is the hardest of the three trials. You will be subjected to a series of physical tests that will test physically how much damage you can take. For this Trial, I must ask you again, are you absolutely certain you are prepared?" He continued.

"I have made it this far, I will not back down now," Hat Kid stated confidently, and the councellor sighed.

"Very well. Let us hope this trial goes... smoother than the others," The lead Councellor said with a hint of sadness and guilt.

Hat Kid went pale. Councellors almost never show emotion, so if the leader of the Council himself really feels so guilty about subjecting her to this trial...

She knew she was in for a world of pain.


	13. Chapter 12: Agony

Chapter 12: Agony

The lead Councellor summoned two guards to escort Hat Kid somewhere, and they grabbed her lightly by the arms and guided her over to a small room, then, before she could do anything, pushed her inside and sealed the door.

She saw a bunch of holes in the floor and walls of the room and a camera that was covered in waterproof coating. She frowned. This test was going to be water-related.

Just as she expected, she heard something click, then water began seeping into the room. It began filling up the room quickly, and soon she was swimming in the enclosed space. The water was reaching near the ceiling, so before it could do that, she took a large gasp.

She knew her oxygen would last longer if she moved as little as possible and proceeded to not move, and she counted the seconds.

Thirty seconds had passed, and she could feel her lungs demanding for oxygen, but pushed down the reflex to breathe and sat still longer. Then, a minute had passed. She was beginning to panic. She was really feeling the urge to gasp for air. More time passed, and it was near unbearable.

One minute and thirty seconds had passed, and she gave up. She gasped for air, but since there was none, she only inhaled water. More time passed, and she was near losing consciousness, when the two minute mark passed and the water began draining from the room.

The door to the chamber opened and she tried stepping out, but tripped and fell on her face. The guards brought her to a machine which made her cough out all the water in her lungs. She groaned loudly. That was just the first test.

After they checked to make sure she hadn't recieved brain damage or anything, they escorted her to another room. This room, on the ceiling, had a large vent covered with metal bars blowing large amounts of air into the room.

She tilted her head in confusion. What, were they going to try to kill her with _air?_ The door sealed shut behind her and she heard a noise above her, and saw the bars across the vent begin to glow.

Oh. It was a heating element. They were going to burn her. On the wall, a digital thermometer was displayed at 25 degrees (Celsius/Centigrade), and that number began slowly ticking up as the heating element turned on.

At first, when it turned to the thirties, it actually felt rather nice for Hat Kid, the extra heat. It felt warm and cozy, but she wasn't smiling, as she knew this was not a relaxing sauna. This was basically a sophisticated torture chamber.

Eventually, the number ticked up to 40 degrees, and she began feeling the heat. It was still somewhat bearable, but it was definitely not pleasant. However, the Council wasn't done with her just yet.

The heating element was fully activated, and the number eventually showed 50 degrees. She was sweating profusely now, and panting almost like a dog, and she sat down and tried fanning herself.

However, it still didn't feel extreme enough for a Trial, and the test didn't end yet. Finally, the number hit 60 degrees. By this point, any excess water had evaporated off, and her vision was distorted as the air was vibrating intensely from the heat.

Hat Kid didn't move at all. She felt like if she moved she would ignite from the heat, so she just sat there and took it, panting like absolute mad. After what was possibly the longest five minutes of Hat Kid's life, the heating element was turned off and the door opened, and she ran out of the room, but she felt so weak that she just collapsed to her hands and knees with a groan.

Seeing how she was possibly too weak to stand, the guards simply grabbed her arms and dragged her back to the Council, where she slowly stood up and gave a look of determination.

The Council was amazed at how absolutely determined she was.

"You never give up, do you?" One of them asked her.

"Never," Hat Kid said weakly, yet stubbornly.

"Determined or not, you are not done just yet. There is one last test for you, Starweaver, and it shall be the worst," The lead councellor stated, "The last tests tested how you handle in extremes, but they didn't necessarily test how much torment you can handle before breaking."

She frowned. That didn't sound good for her. Suddenly, two identical metal handles raised from the floor in front of her, just in grabbing range.

"Grab those handles," He ordered her, and she did. Nothing happened, and she tilted her head in confusion. "We hope you're ready for this."

She was going to ask what he meant, but he turned a dial and she felt something shoot through her body from one arm to the other, causing her to begin twitching and convulsing slightly. She then realized she had grabbed two ends of an electrical circuit, completing it.

"Stage 1 of the final testing has begun," He said emotionlessly. It was **most definitely **not pleasant, but she only felt a tingling sensation that caused her hands to clamp shut.

He twisted the dial a bit more. "Stage 2," He muttered, and the tingling feeling got slightly more intense as she began twitching and convulsing more.

Seeing how well she was handling it, he didn't wait around. He turned the dial further.

"Stage 3."

The tingling feeling became quite intense, and she could hardly control her arm movements anymore, but it wasn't necessarily painful. What loose hair she had began to stand on end. He turned the dial more.

"Stage 4."

The electricity amped up further, causing her whole body to begin convulsing and twitching, and she felt a new, but familiar, feeling. Pain. It wasn't much, however, so she remained silent. The dial was turned even more.

"Stage 5 of 10."

Her heart dropped. She was only halfway done the test?! The pain became more noticeable, and she began cringing slightly. The dial was twisted more.

"Stage 6."

She could hear the sound of electricity arcing through her as clear as day, and she could most definitely feel it just as much. It was really beginning to hurt. However, she still didn't make a peep. The Council shifted in their seats. They were all impressed, but they weren't impressed enough just yet.

"Stage 7."

Now her entire body was convulsing and shaking uncontrollably, and she made small whimpers of pain, but no one could hear it over the loud crackling noise of the electricity running through her veins. It wasn't over just yet, though.

"Stage 8 of 10."

The electricity became near unbearable, and she finally began crying out from the pain, and people noticed and began whispering among themselves. However, there were two more stages left, and there was only one way to end the test.

"Stage 9 of 10."

The intensity of the electricity was putting Hat Kid to her limits. She began screaming, as much as she told herself to stop, and everyone gave a communal gasp. Someone rose from the viewing area. It was Tim.

"End this now!" He ordered, and the lead Councellor nodded and prepared to turn off the circuit, and Hat Kid barely noticed.

"No!" Was all she could say, but, to her relief, it was enough. The councellor put his hand pack on the dial and turned it to the max.

"Final stage! You have a minute remaining!" The Councellor shouted, but Hat Kid didn't notice. Why?

Agony. Pure, raw, unbridled, torturous agony. It was here she finally comprehended the true definition of pain. She screamed so loudly that people had to cover their ears.

Eventually, after the worst 60 seconds anyone could possibly imagine, the machine was turned off, and Hat Kid let go of the machine, twitching and convulsing, then collapsed to the ground.

The duo of guards picked her up and a medic came over, and they guided her to a room where she laid down for a few minutes while the doctor checked for any major injuries or complications.

Eventually, when she stopped twitching and felt strong enough to stand, they returned to the Council. The medic spoke to the lead Councellor about the results, who raised an eyebrow.

"What? Are you certain you did not make a mistake?" He asked the medic in disbelief, which made a spectating Tim nervous. After more inaudible conversation with the medic, he turned to the child and stared at her.

"Impressive, Starweaver. Most impressive. You made it through the test without any injuries or complications. Most impressive for somebody as youthful as you," He explained, clearly impressed, then he cleared his throat.

"Heather Harriet Starweaver, you have passed the Trial of Strength, Trial of Intellect, and Trial of Endurance spectacularily. Now, it is time for your final, true, trial," He said formally, "The Trial of Courage. Do you wish to become a Timekeeper?"

"With all of my heart," She answered.

"Do you feel it as your duty to protect your planet?" He asked.

"With all of my strength," She answered.

"Do you wish to see your planet grow and progress?" He asked again.

"With all of my mind," She answered.

"Will you protect the Time Pieces, even if it costs you your life?" He asked slowly.

"With all of my being," She answered calmly.

"Prove it, by sealing your promises in blood," He demanded, and a large, spherical glass basin full of water and an elegant and beautiful ceremonial knife was brought to her. The basin was set down at her feet and she was given the knife.

Knowing what to do, she grabbed the handle of the knife and put the blade to her thumb, then slid it across her thumb lightning fast, slashing the tip of her thumb open. She did this without batting an eye, and when her blood began to pool on the tip of her thumb, she held it over the basin so that it dripped into the water, sending a splash of red throughout it.

The basin was levitated into the air and the lead Councellor stood up slowly, and he turned around as a fire was raised up into the room. The room was made entirely of fire retardant materials, so it was safe. In the middle of the fire was an ancient sword.

He picked up the blade and slowly walked over to Hat Kid, stopping in front of her. She looked up to him, and he raised the sword in the air in a grandiose motion, then brought it down near her face.

"By the power invested in me by the Council and the markings of the Ancient Timeblade, I hereby pronounce you," He said, then proceeded to lightly and slowly create a thunderbolt scar above each of Hat Kid's eyes, then a Time Piece shaped scar on her forehead, making her cringe. The blade was extremely hot, you know.

"Timekeeper!" He finished, then put away the blade. Everybody in the audience began cheering loudly, and Hat Kid bowed to the Council then left. Everyone outside was cheering as well, and Tim had somehow managed to get down there, and grinned at her.

She sprinted toward him and they hugged.

"I knew you had it in you, kiddo. I always knew," He told her, and she hugged him harder. They let go, and Hat Kid giggled. For the fun of it, she spent the next hour taking pictures for the news and whatnot before returning home.

When they did get home, the first thing she did was have a shower, made more troublesome by her new scars, then go to bed. The trials had truly tired her out.


	14. Chapter 13: The Sky's Not The Limit

Chapter 13: The Sky's Not The Limit

**A/N: Hat Kid finally gets her beloved spaceship. I'm adding a new room, though, to avoid it not making sense. There's a bedroom, kitchen, and laundry room, what's missing?**

Surprisingly, Tim woke Hat Kid up from her peaceful slumber. He never did that.

"Morning, Timekeeper," He said light-heartedly, and she grumbled.

"Is there really a good reason to wake me?" She asked miserably.

"You're a Timekeeper now. Because of that, I have to show you something," He explained, "Get up, get ready, then come with me."

She did just that, but instead of her normal jolly energy, she was just cranky and miserable. She was extremely sore that day from the Trials, and she was still somewhat tired. After half an hour, they finally left the building and got in the vehicle.

"Where are we going?" Hat Kid asked.

"You'll see," Was Tim's mysterious response. He drove for a few minutes until the massive, super-tall spaceport loomed in the distance.

"Why would we need to come here? I'm not starting yet, am I?" She asked frantically. They stopped in the giant building and took an elevator to the top. They walked around the top level of the spaceport until they came to an empty spaceport dock, which confused the kid even more.

"I've been meaning to save this for your adulthood, but seeing how you're already a Timekeeper, I thought it would definitely be best to give it to you now," He explained.

"Give me what? A private spaceport dock?" She asked again.

"No, kiddo. Patience," He muttered, motioned for her to stay where she was, then walked out of sight. A few minutes later, he returned, with a giant grin on his face, which confused her _even more._

She heard a noise behind her, and turned to see a spaceship dock at the port. It was made out of wood (obviously modified to be space-resistant), and had a gigantic comet-proof window on the front of it with a hatch near the bottom.

Her jaw dropped, and she just stared at the large vehicle. Tim placed his hand on her shoulder.

"This is all yours, kiddo. Your own Spaceship Mark 14, with some customizations I put in that I felt you would appreciate," He told her, and she almost jumped inside the spaceship, but stopped and gave a questioning look to her guardian. "You wanna have a tour?"

She nodded very rapidly, and he chuckled, then opened the hatch, and they entered. They were in a large main hub with a carpet floor, a small television off to the side, a pilot/captain's chair covered in pillows, some various circular and futuristic doors and a set of blue double doors leading to other rooms all with checkmarks near them, and a large monitor with a Time Piece and 46/46 on it next to a large vault with a clock in the center of it.

"This is the Main Hub, where you'll pilot the ship, and will also serve as a living room on your journeys. You'll have to take pilot training, though. Can't have you driving something as grand as a spaceship without proper knowledge, that'd be a death wish," He explained, and she nodded again.

"First room I think you should see is the kitchen. Follow me," He muttered, then she followed her father figure up a ladder up toward the blue double doors, which he promptly opened to reveal a large, spacious kitchen with a painting of a solar system, checkered tiles, some chairs, barrels, and rope, and various kitchen appliances.

"Why would I need a kitchen?" She asked, and he chuckled.

"I knew you'd ask that, as your cooking is like a scientific experiment gone wrong," He said jokingly, and she giggled. "All living spaces require a kitchen, obviously. Better be safe than sorry, besides, I know a way this will be useful for you, but I can't explain that just yet. Oh, and, I included a telescope in each major room except the Hub so you can examine different areas of a planet without having to actually go down."

She pouted at her guardian keeping things from her, but she knew it was probably for a good reason. She scratched her head.

"Okay, what's next?" She asked.

"I'll show you the Machine Room and the Gallery," He explained, then Hat Kid followed him back into the lower level of the Main Hub and into an orange-brown circular door to their left, which automatically opened into a hallway with some windows on them. They went through another automatic door, revealing a large room with various machines, like a supercomputer, a monitor stuck to being very bright, another telescope, a futuristic desk, and a door on the left side of the room.

"This is where you'll go to do errands like computer related research and other machine-related tasks. Also, if you find any gadgets or trinkets on a planet that you'd like to bring back here as a souvenir, you could keep them here instead of having to search the whole spaceship," He told her, and she nodded.

"Does that door lead to the gallery?" She asked, and he nodded. They went through the door, through a hallway, and down into a small, tall, empty room.

"If you ever get an artistic touch, this is where you can store your creations," He explained, "I know how much you love creating things." She grinned and nodded.

"Next, I'll show you the Bedroom and Bathroom," He said, and they went back out into the main hub and into a purple door on the opposite side of the hub.

They went through the door and the hallway into a large, spacious bedroom with a giant bed and some smaller beds off to the side, a large wardrobe, a toy chest (she is a little girl after all), a desk, a nightstand, and a telescope. She then looked to the left side of the room and gasped to see a large mound of pillows taking up half of the room with a diving board at the top.

She bolted for it and jumped off of it into the pile of pillows. She swam around in them (literally) for a minute, before climbing out, then became curious about something.

"What are the other beds for?" She asked.

"Various reasons, like if your big bed breaks a leg, you have a guest, or basically anything," He answered. She put her hand to her chin thoughtfully. Seemed like quite a bit extra just as a 'just-in-case' measure.

Regardless, she didn't feel like pressuring him and they went through a door on the opposite side of the room to a large bathroom with what you'd expect to see in a bathroom in it, your bath/shower, toilet, vanity, medicine cabinet, yada yada yada.

"Can't live somewhere without a bathroom," Was all he said, and she nodded again.

"Ok, where do we go next?" She inquired.

"The Engine Room, Lab, and Laundry Room," He answered, and she raised an eyebrow. Lab? She followed him back into the Main Hub and through a blue automatic door and down a hallway into a very large and cold room with multiple levels and an elevator raising up to a doorway into another room. They stepped on the elevator and went over into the other section of the room, which showed the gigantic engine, a desk, a large window, and a telescope.

"This is obviously where the Engine is housed, so you can reach it, and if necessary, repair it without trouble," He explained, "There are also some other various bits and bobs around here, like the elevator down to the Laundry Room, but the main gist of the room is the Engine and the telescope."

They went back to the other half of the room and walked through another automatic door and through yet another hallway down into a large laboratory with a large window, some machines and mechanisms, and some chemicals strewn about the place.

"This is where you'll come to test new, interesting materials, plants, and basically anything you find on a planet to see if they're worth bringing back here," He explained.

"I thought we weren't imperialistic," Hat Kid muttered, and he shook his head.

"I don't mean colonize a planet, kiddo. I mean small-scale operations and whatnot, or maybe large operations on planets without intelligent life," He responded.

"Oh, ok," She mumbled.

From there, they went back into the Engine Room and into a small, cylindrical tube that closed and took them down to another room. Strange looking elevator if you asked her. Regardless of that, they stepped out into a small room with a telescope, some hangers, towels, and laundry machines placed around the room.

"Again, you can't live somewhere without a laundy room. Gotta clean your clothes," He stated, and then they went back out into the main hub. "There's only one last room left for me to show you before I show you something else."

She raised an eyebrow. "Uh, ok, what room?" She asked.

"The Attic," He answered, and she frowned. She didn't like attics, they were all dusty, smelly, and creepy. Anyway, she followed him up to the upper level of the Main Hub, and they stepped on an elevating platform which took them into the Attic.

"What happens if that platform lowers when I'm standing beneath it?" She asked.

"It'll detect that it hit something and stop. You'll just feel a light bump," He replied. She looked around the large, dark room and saw some various storage items about the room, closets, old dressers and wardrobes, chests, and a telescope. "This room, as you'd use most attics, you'll use for storage and whatnot," He explained.

"Oh, good, I don't want to ever have to come up here," She grumbled. Clean or not, she still hated attics.

They heard a creaking noise back in the Main Hub, and Tim grinned.

"What perfect timing! Come!" He said excitedly, and they went back down into the Main Hub, where four kids, clearly not much older than herself, were waiting and talking.


	15. Chapter 14: Introductions

Chapter 14: Introductions

"Huh? What's this?" Hat Kid muttered, and Tim smiled at her and silently shushed her.

"Ah, you have arrived! Welcome, all four of you young ladies and gentlemen, I appreciate you all being able to come here today. I have assembled you all here to meet your new captain," He explained formally and warmly as the four children turned to them and looked at Hat Kid. It was just then she realized what the extra beds were really for.

She blushed, scratched her head, and waved nervously. "Oh, uh, hi!" She said shyly, and someone smiled.

"Huh. You definitely didn't seem like the shy type at your trials," One of them said, "Eh, whatever. We'll get to know you soon, and you won't feel shy around us. So, time to break the ice."

They all stepped forward, and the one who spoke earlier, a boy with blue tattoos on his face, blue eyes, black hair, a grey cap, orange jacket, a white t-shirt with black images and letters on them, red shoes, and grey pants, grinned and shook her hand.

"Might as well start with introductions. You can call me Timmy, I'll serve as your first officer," He explained, and Hat Kid smiled. He seemed nice.

"Nice to meet you!" She replied happily. She was already beginning to feel more comfortable around them.

Next, a girl with blond hair in a spiraling ponytail, a yellow coat and yellow eyes, and pink pants shook her hand excitedly.

"I've always wanted to meet you! I feel like we'll get along super well!" She stated happily, "I'm Alexa, but you can just call me Alex if you want. I'll be the cook! I'll also do other normal chores if no one else can do them, I don't know why, but I like doing that kind of thing."

Hat Kid smiled warmly at her. "You're right, I think we'll become good friends. Nice to meet you too!" She said happily.

Then, another girl stepped forward, who was dressed in different shades of brown and grey and wearing a brown inventor's cap, and shook Hat Kid's hand, but in a far more relaxed manner.

"Good day to you, I'm Bailey," She greeted her sedatedly, "I'll be the engineer and repair woman of this crew."

Hat Kid smiled at her and scratched her head. "Nice to meet you as well! However, isn't that kind of role more of a boy's kind of thing?"

Bailey frowned. "Who says I can't do what I like just because I'm a girl?" She asked somewhat annoyedly.

"Good point, sorry, didn't mean to offend you," Hat Kid apologized.

"No problem," Bailey replied.

Then, a somewhat frail boy dressed in a white labcoat stepped forward and shyly shook Hat Kid's hand.

"H-hello! I'm Marcus, y-you can just call me Marc if you want though," He greeted extremely shyly, "I-I'll be the researcher and scientist."

She smiled at him as well. "You shy, too?"

"Y-yeah, I'm typically not this shy normally, b-but first introductions and public speeches give me the heebie-jeebies, and now I'm meeting a celebrity, the youngest Timekeeper ever? I don't know how I convinced myself to even speak," He explained nervously, "I won't be so shy if you talk to me about science and stuff, though."

She smiled at him again. "Don't worry yourself, it's fine, I completely understand," She reassured him, "No offense, but why would we need for someone to completely take the role of research and whatever? I could do it myself,"

"You're the captain, you'll be far too busy to do that, so if I take the role, you won't have to stress and multitask so much," He explained, far less shyly this time.

"Ah, I see. How did you all get to this point at such a young age?" She asked all four of them.

Timmy chuckled. "Same way you did, trained and studied _real _hard," He explained, "But, you becoming a freaking Timekeeper as a _kid?_ Wow, way to make us look bad." He said jokingly.

She giggled. "Honestly, it's nice to have met you all. I'm certain we'll all become BFF's very soon!" She said warmly.

"I'd bet money on it," Bailey said.

"Yes! Best friends forever!" Alexa cheered.

"I've calculated an approximately 99.9% chance of that happening," Marcus stated emotionlessly, then laughed, "Bah, who am I kidding? That's a 100% chance, for sure."

They chatted for the next 15 minutes about random, mundane stuff, until everyone had to leave, and thus left. She was sad to see them leave.

However, she realized something. She turned to Tim, who was silently and happily waiting, leaned against a wall.

"Wait, if I go off on adventures, I won't be able to see you or Aunt Christine!" She shouted, and he smiled warmly at her.

"Don't worry about us, kiddo. Don't let us hold you back from greatness. You're strong, I know you can handle yourself without us. Besides, you'll have brand new friends to talk to and hang out with, I'll have to tell you not to forget about us!" He explained whimsically.

"You clearly underestimate how important both of you are to me. You're my dad!" She pouted, and he smiled.

"Don't worry, kiddo. We'll always be here when you get back," He advised her, then checked the time. "We should probably go back, I have some things to do."

They exited the spaceship and it took off into the sky. To their convenience, most modern spaceships have a basic autopilot function, that allows them to self-dock and self-undock. Other than that, though, everything is dependent on the pilot.

Later that day, they were eating dinner, when Tim thought of something he should mention to the kid.

"Hey, kiddo, you know how I said you'll need to take pilot training?" He asked her, and she nodded. "Well, you have quite a bit to learn still before you set off on your first adventure, and I don't have the time to teach you it all, so you're being enrolled into a very special academy, one for the elite where all Timekeepers go to study. It's one of a kind."

"Oh? That sounds fun," She said emotionlessly.

"I'll teach you how to drive a spaceship myself, I have something that I think will help you with it (without putting anyone's life at risk), but the rest you'll learn from The Academy. They'll teach you things like, properties of Time Pieces, Time Rifts, flora and fauna to watch out for, things like that that every Timekeeper needs to know," He explained.

"Ok, when do I begin?" She asked.

"A week from now. I've already talked to the principal of the school about your... uh... confrontations in past schooling, so he's agreed to have a bodyguard specifically for you on the school grounds in case anyone gets out of hand," He stated.

"That makes me feel better. It's only on school grounds?" She asked.

"Yes. The bodyguard is a school security guard, as such, he cannot leave the premises during school hours, even for you," He explained.

"Oh. Eh, whatever, I've been around the city by myself tons without anything happening, I don't see how this will be any different," She muttered.

Tim frowned. Something about that statement set him off, and it wasn't even the kid's tone of voice or whatever. Just... the words themselves rubbed him the wrong way.

He pushed the thought aside and smiled. "Exactly, kiddo, and I'm sure you'll be the top student again. My little genius," He stated, and she grinned.


	16. Chapter 15: Alarm

Chapter 15: Alarm

**A/N: I feel like I need to mention something. If you think this has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention. Regardless, enjoy the chapter.**

A week later, Hat Kid began attending The Academy. It was peaceful for her, her peers viewed her as an equal and didn't care about her age. However, that could be because she had a bodyguard with her at all times during school hours, but she didn't care. She made no enemies during her times there.

Like in secondary school, the classes actually interested her, but this time, they were far more challenging and difficult, and actually required her to push herself to her cognitive limits.

She learned about what Time Pieces could be used for, like powering machinery, as weaponry, what they did when broken, and thus about Time Rifts, as well as how and why to repair them.

However, there was one particular class and lesson she didn't really pay attention to. She was sitting in this class one day, bored out of her mind, listening yet not listening to the class. The professor was speaking about a strange green and purple plant, and instead of bringing in a live specimen, he only showed pictures of the plant.

At the end of the class, he grabbed everyone's attention, especially Hat Kid's, as he noticed she wasn't really paying attention.

"Repeat after me what you will do if you see these flora on a planet," He demanded, which confused her.

"Okay," She said.

"If I see these plants..." He begun.

"If I see these plants..." She mimicked.

"I will flee the planet as fast as possible," He finished.

"I will flee the planet as fast as possible," She repeated.

"Very good. Class is dismissed," He stated, and everyone left, but he stopped Hat Kid. "Starweaver, I wish to speak with you."

"Okay?" She muttered, then they sat down, and he sighed.

"This is a matter I feel is necessary to speak about. You should be paying more attention in class," He advised.

"But, why? It doesn't seem that important," She complained.

"Knowing what is safe to cook and eat if you're out of food isn't important? Knowing what can kill you and what is safe to be around isn't important? I think not," He muttered annoyedly, "Now, I understand you aren't interested in the subject, and your high level of energy and extroversion, but this is literally a life or death subject. So, for the love of Chronos, _pay attention. _The Council would not be pleased if their golden girl died on her first excursion."

"Okay, I'll try," She said tiredly, then left.

She tried paying more attention for the rest of the class, but she still didn't remember much, if anything, about those purple plants.

Near the end of the semester, she decided to try to stay for a few hours at the school to catch up on things she missed in the class. She phoned Tim from a device on her wrist (similar to our smart watches, but faaaaaaar more advanced,) and told him that she'd be staying at the school to study. He frowned and said he'd be fine with it, but that he was busy and couldn't pick her up, so she should return as soon as she was done.

She learned everything about the purple plants, like their scientific name, but failed to memorize it completely. It would much later prove to nearly be her demise in Alpine Skyline. She stayed until right after sunset, then thought she had stayed for far too long and left the school.

She had a constant frown on her face on the way home. She learned that darkness most definitely can make the most innocent and happy of places seem like a house of horrors. She picked up the pace and continued her trek back home, until she was 3/4 of the way there, when she got a _**very**_ bad feeling. She felt like she was in imminent danger, but there was nothing around.

Then, something happened that seemed to justify her anxiety. She heard what sounded like a twig snap behind her, alarming her. She turned around and saw nothing.

"Who's there?!" She asked. No response. She slowly turned around and continued walking back, but she thought she saw a shadowy figure emerge from the corner of her eye, and she turned around again to see nothing.

She began to hyperventilate. She realized she was being stalked. She phoned Tim again, constantly keeping her eyes on where she saw the figure emerge.

He was annoyed at how long the kid was taking to get home, when his device beeped and he opened a call on his holographic device, and saw the kid standing there with a look on her face that immediately sent alarms off in his head.

Pure, utter, terror.

"Kid? What the hell happened?" He shouted, which seemed to make her more anxious, but he couldn't help it.

"I-I don't know! I think I'm being stalked!" She explained terrifyingly.

"Where are you right now? I'll come to you," He stated.

"I'm three quarters of the way home on my usual path. Please, get here as soon as you possibly can," She begged, and he bolted to his vehicle.

The call ended, and Hat Kid began sprinting home as fast as her little legs could take her. She didn't stop to turn around anymore, odds are the person knew what was going on and she didn't know what they might do.

She heard loud, rapid footsteps behind her and knew they were chasing after her, but before she could really react, she felt something hit her hard in the back of the head and she was knocked unconscious, but she saw one thing before she blacked out.

It looked like oddly familiar headlights.


	17. Chapter 16: Scar

Chapter 16: Scar

**A/N: Brace yourselves, this chapter obviously ain't gonna be a happy one.**

She woke up with a headache, and looked around her surroundings. She was in a dark, cube-shaped room, and she realized she was chained vertically to a metal grate. Her headache was beginning to hurt really badly, and she groaned from pain. A figure emerged from the shadows that looked oddly familar.

"You're awake," He said malevolently.

"Who are you? Where am I?" She asked in a state of panic.

"You don't remember me? How rude," He muttered, "I'm 'that soldier' you fought in your trials. I thought I should get even for what you did to me."

She remembered now. That's why he looked familiar. However, it only made her more scared.

"What do you mean? I beat you, fair and square! I didn't do anything wrong!" She shouted.

"Don't you understand? After that day, I lost _**EVERYTHING!**_ I became the laughingstock of everyone! 'Oh, wow, you got your ass kicked by a girl? Pathetic!' 'You must've cheated your way to the top if you lost to a girl,'. You _clearly _don't understand what that did to me!" He yelled.

"I think I understand _just fine!_ I was the laughingstock of _my _school before I was bumped up to secondary! Besides, what did you expect me to do, let you kill me out of mercy? Idiot!" She hissed.

"You might want to watch your mouth. Did you not see the situation you're in?" He stated darkly.

"W-what are you going to do?" She asked.

"I think the Trials were rigged. No way a small, pathetic _little girl _like **you** could've made it through that kind of hellish torment. Adults will try and die doing those trials, how could a kid make it through that?" He asked furiously.

"What are you saying?" She replied.

"I'm saying that I'm gonna put you through _my own _trials. Ones that won't be rigged and unfair, at least not to other people," He explained, which sparked some hope in her.

"So, if I beat these trials of yours, you'll let me go?" She asked, and he laughed evilly, walked over to a wall, opened a large door, and emerged later with a metal bar, red hot on one end, and with a rubber handle on the other. He slowly pointed the hot end toward her face, and she had to look away so it wouldn't burn her face.

"If you think you're getting out of this alive, you haven't been paying attention. You took everything away from me, now I'll take literally everything away from you," He explained darkly, and then pulled the bar away, and prepared to thrust it into her face, when she screamed.

However, they were both interrupted from their actions when a loud _**BANG **_was heard. It sounded like a door being blasted off/open. The former soldier became confused and dropped the bar, as yelling and shouting, as well as signs of combat were heard above them.

He grabbed a dagger from a sheath and stood next to the door, which was knocked off of its hinges. Who was standing there, you may ask? A _**VERY **_angry Tim accompanied by a platoon of soldiers.

The former soldier jumped out and lunged at him, but he threw a Time Piece at him, which sent him flying back into the wall. The CEO was allowed to use Time Pieces if absolutely necessary, and in this situation, it most definitely was.

He walked over to the former soldier, who was groaning from pain on the ground, and stared at him.

"Arrest this poor excuse of a man," He hissed, and the soldiers did, roughly picking him up and escorting him away. He then heard shaky breathing and turned to see Hat Kid chained there.

He ran up to her and freed her, and she fell to the floor with a grunt. He sighed.

"Oh, kiddo, what'd he do to you?" He asked sadly.

"He taunted me, said he lost everything because of me, and told me that he was going to put me through his own 'trials'," She explained weakly.

"What kind of trials?" He asked, then she looked up and pointed with a shaky arm at the red hot metal bar on the floor.

"What? A red hot bar? What would he-" He muttered, then put two and two together. He was going to burn her with it. He began shaking out of pure rage and had to take deep breaths to calm himself down.

"I'm never staying late at school again," Hat Kid grumbled, and Tim huffed.

"I hope the Council executes him. Assaulting a Timekeeper is treason of the highest order," He said, then Hat Kid began crying. She thought she was loved by everyone, now she knew that was clearly not the case.

He picked her up gently and carried her out to his vehicle where the soldiers were waiting, then gently put her down in the passenger seat and drove back home.

When they got back to the penthouse, Hat Kid was still shaking. He tried calming her down for a few minutes, but he knew this was an event that would stick with her forever, like a scar.

He put his hand on her shoulder to try to comfort her, and she just sighed. Now, she probably wouldn't be allowed to explore the city freely, at least not without _someone _accompanying her, which saddened her. She was enjoying her freedom and liberty.

Then, suddenly, someone called Tim, which confused him. Why in the Universe would _anyone _call him after such an eventful night? He sighed and accepted the call, revealing Christine, who saw the look on his face and frowned.

"What happened?" She asked, "I heard something bad happened and thought I should call you."

"Where are you right now?" Tim asked.

"In the lobby," She answered, "Don't avoid the question, please. What happened?"

"The kid was stalked and attacked. Me and a group of soldiers managed to find her and rescue her, though, but she's obviously very shaken up about it," He explained desperately.

This shocked her. "What?! I'll come up and visit you-" She explained, then turned and developed a confused look, then began talking to someone, but it was inaudible to Tim.

"What's going on?" He asked.

"There's four... kids that just arrived. Two boys and two girls. They said they heard something happened and came to visit you two," She explained.

He raised an eyebrow. Two boys and two girls?

"What do they look like?" He asked.

"One of the boys has a grey cap, orange jacket, white t-shirt, and blue tattoos on his face. One girl has a yellow coat and yellow eyes, the other boy has a white labcoat on, and the other girl is wearing brown and grey clothes and a brown inventor cap," She stated.

"That's the kid's crew," He explained, and she nodded slowly.

"Oh, that makes sense. I'll come in with them," She said, then ended the call. A few minutes later, the door opened, and five people entered.

"Hello! Hopefully our barging in isn't-" Timmy greeted, but stopped when he saw Hat Kid kneeling down on the floor. She looked like a mess. "Captain?" He said.

"Oh, dear, what happened?" Alexa asked.

"She seems to have gone through a very traumatic experience," Marcus explained.

"If she was upset this badly by something, then something really bad must have happened. What happened?" Bailey grumbled.

"I..." Hat Kid began, but sighed. Tim looked sadly at the four children.

"She stayed late at her academy to get caught up on some things she missed, and when she came home, she was stalked and kidnapped by a former rival, who would've tortured her and probably killed her hadn't I found her," He explained sadly.

They didn't know how to take this information. How could anyone hate her? Feel justified in hurting her? Who do they think they are?

"What happened to the person?" Timmy asked.

"He was arrested," Tim said.

"Hmph. Good. Shame we weren't there to see that," Timmy grumbled, and Hat Kid tilted her head in confusion.

"Nobody gets away with hurting a kid," Marcus grumbled.

Alexa smiled at Hat Kid. "Trust us, we won't let anyone hurt you, unless they want to feel our wrath!" She explained angrily, yet warmly.

"Why?" Hat Kid asked.

Bailey smiled relaxedly. "Because that's what friends do for eachother," She muttered, and Hat Kid smiled warmly and stood up. They'd literally just met and she already knew she liked them, cared for them, and they cheered her up. Yep, they were going to be best friends until the end of time.

She giggled. "Thank you for coming here. It means a lot to me," She said.

"Wouldn't've missed it for anything," Timmy said.


	18. Chapter 17: Odyssey

Chapter 17: Pilot

**A/N: Hat Kid finally begins her pilot training. I originally misjudged how long this would be, but it **_**should **_**be over by chapter 20 or 21. Then, I'll begin work on the sequel, and guess what? It's gonna be possibly **_**even darker**_** than this!**

The next day, she thought it'd be a normal day, but then she talked to Tim.

"Hey, kiddo, I thought I'd begin training you to pilot a spaceship today," He told her.

"Are you sure I'm ready to pilot a spaceship yet? I don't want to crash into something and destroy the ship or injure someone," She asked.

"Oh, trust me, kiddo. You aren't going to be hurting anyone," He stated, "Follow me." She followed him to a very large room with a large pad in the center.

"What's this?" She asked.

"Step in the pad," He ordered her, and she did so. Then, transparent gloves, boots, and a visor emerged from the ground. "Put those on," He told her, and she did so.

"Seriously, what is this?" She asked annoyedly, but he didn't answer, and instead ran off to the side and fiddled with some machinery, then suddenly the pad in the center sprung to life with a hologram, and the visor allowed her to fully see the hologram.

"Virtual reality! This way, you can do literally anything in a fake world and not have it affect anything here!" He explained proudly, "This is my own design."

"So, what are the gloves and boots for?" She asked again.

"So you can interact with objects in the virtual world. If you brush your hand against a virtual wall, your hand will actually stop and brush against nothing in the real world," He said.

Tampering of machinery was heard, and the hologram switched to Hat Kid's spaceship, and soon after, Tim appeared beside her.

"I'll be joining you so I can help you," He explained, "However, first, some guests wanted to see your first day of training."

"What guests?" She asked.

"None other than your crew!" He said, then vanished from the hologram, and soon she could hear the voices of her 4 companions near her, but she couldn't see them.

"Woah, this looks sick!" Timmy exclaimed.

"Took me awhile to make," Tim stated, "Well, let's begin."

She begun her training, and because she was a fast learner, she took it in quickly. She begun going through a cycle of studying and training that was similar to when he first trained her to fight. Eventually, she became so skilled at it that Tim thought she would be able to fly her spaceship in the real world.

He told her this, and she didn't agree.

"Are you _sure_ I'm ready? I mean, I'm only a kid!" She said nervously.

"Yes, but you're a kid who has talent, knowledge, and skill. You're a kid who became a freaking Timekeeper. You're ready," He explained.

She caved in and went with it, and Tim flew the spaceship into space, and then told Hat Kid to get in the captain seat.

"Fly the spaceship around the planet's equator," He ordered her, and she did so. To her surprise, she did it smoothly and effectively. In fact, she did it so effortlessly and easily, he immediately told her to go for a spaceship driving licence.

She passed it with flying colours, and the Council deemed her ready for her first odyssey. She would be leaving in a week. Throughout that week, she spent a lot of time with her crew, as she wanted to truly get to know them so that they could work more efficiently and with less issues on their journey.

She didn't realize it, but she was actually getting sad and nervous about leaving. She was sitting with the four people she'd consider her friends when they noticed a lost look on her face.

"Is something wrong?" Alexa asked.

"Huh?" Hat Kid mumbled.

"You look troubled. Is something bothering you?" Marcus inquired.

"Well, I did feel fine, but now that I think about it..." She muttered, "Yeah. I don't know why, but I'm sad about the idea of leaving."

"Probably because you've never left the planet before. It's a new chapter in your life, in all of our lives, so you're nervous about the idea and homesick," Marcus explained, "If you weren't nervous, that would be more concerning than you being nervous right now."

"Relax. It'll be fine," Bailey advised.

"You're right," Hat Kid gave in, but she still felt sad and nervous about leaving.

Eventually, the time came for her to leave. She woke up that day feeling giddy as a schoolgirl, yet with butterflies in her stomach. She got up, and Tim drove her to the spaceport. No words were spoken.

They went up to the highest level of the spaceport, where the spaceship was docked. Her four crewmates were already waiting there for her, and grinned to see her. She walked over to the hatch of the spaceship, and she heard a sigh.

She turned around to see Tim looking off into the distance with a frown, crossing his arms.

"I guess this is goodbye?" She said, and he smiled sadly.

"No, kiddo. This isn't goodbye, you're coming back," He said, "It's just kinda saddening to see you leaving already."

She ran up to him and hugged him. "Don't worry. I'll always be your little genius," She said warmly, and he smiled and hugged her back.

"Well, I shouldn't keep you waiting any longer. Go get them, kiddo," He told her, then the five kids jumped into the spaceship. Timmy sensed that she probably wanted to wave goodbye and hopped into his first officer's chair, then piloted the ship out into the atmosphere, Hat Kid and Tim waving goodbye to eachother as he did so.

She sighed and fell to her knees, then began silently crying. All four of her crewmates knelt down to her and hugged her.

"Don't worry, hattie! You'll see him again!" Alexa said happily.

"You aren't alone. You have us," Bailey stated.

"We'll do our best to support you, no matter what happens," Timmy promised.

"I don't know much about support, so I'll just agree with what the others said," Marcus grumbled.

Hat Kid hugged them all back. Just as they all had predicted, they had already become best friends forever. She stood up, hopped into her seat, grinning like mad, and put her hand on the steering column of the ship.

Everyone sat down, and Hat Kid engaged the hyperdrive, causing the ship to zoom off away from the planet faster than light. These odysseys of theirs, even though Hat Kid was no longer accompanied by Tim or Christine, would be the happiest moments of their lives.


	19. Chapter 18: Adventures

Chapter 18: Adventures

Thus began a new chapter in Hat Kid's life, the adventures of the Marvellous Quintuple, as some people began calling them. It didn't really roll of the tongue, but they enjoyed the title regardless.

On their journeys they really got to know eachother, living with eachother on a day-to-day basis. They became extremely close, as close as Hat Kid and Bow Kid became to eachother, if not closer, and Hat Kid even developed a crush on Timmy (although she never, _**ever**_ acted on it and pushed it down until it became her deepest, darkest secret)

They basically became family to eachother, and they stopped by different planets, taking souvenirs and materials and whatnot, as well as finding many Time Pieces, hundreds, maybe thousands of them. One planet that interested them the most was an interesting planet in a single-star system.

It was far larger than their planet, was dominated by 7 continents, had gigantic oceans, and had a large ice-covered area near the southern pole. This planet had intelligent life, people called humans that looked very similar to Time Lords, but were far weaker than them. The planet didn't have any Time Pieces, but what it did have interested them and made them stay, where they gained speculation and interest.

Hat Kid even found some beautiful paintings on the planet and loved them so much she painted her own versions of them, which she kept in her gallery. From all the Time Pieces and new materials they collected, they earned lots of fame, and she became one of the most prestigious Timekeepers to ever exist.

Unfortunately, this new power, liberty, and reputation made her somewhat cocky and prideful, she still respected her crew, but she began taking the Time Pieces for granted, treating them simply as a way of profit rather than all-powerful artifacts.

Her crew noticed this and became concerned, but they didn't confront her about it, as they didn't want to risk conflict. So, they kept journeying on, going from planet to planet, solar system to solar system, finding Time Pieces on some planets, sometimes having to repair a natural rift in time, which was rare, but not anything really worth noting.

However, Hat Kid eventually became so cocky and arrogant her crew became fed up. They were orbiting around a new planet one day when they began talking.

"A new day, a new planet," Hat Kid muttered, "Okay, we'll go down and check for Time Pieces, blah blah blah, I'm not expecting much resistance."

"I feel like you aren't really taking your job seriously," Timmy admitted, which annoyed her.

"And what would you know about it? You aren't a Timekeeper," She replied, which irritated him as well.

"Judging by the fact that I actually seem to know and respect the power of those things, it seems like I know more than you do about it," He hissed, "Just look at how bad that makes you look!"

"You know, you shouldn't talk that way to your captain," She warned him, and he scoffed.

Alexa heard the commotion and came down from the kitchen, clearly panicked by the sudden arguing.

"Guys, stop! Fighting won't get us anywhere here!" She exclaimed, clearly panicked.

"Oh, no. I want to see what he _really _thinks of me," Hat Kid said angrily.

"What do you mean? I was just telling you to take your job more seriously! You nearly died trying to do this, you'd think you should treat it that way!" Timmy yelled.

"Why?! Nothing has happened! Nothing! The Council overreacts to this thing. Nothing is going to happen," She barked back.

"You don't know that! You can't frickin' see the future!" He yelled. Their arguing became so loud Bailey came out from the Engine Room, and she didn't seem pleased.

"What is going on here?" She shouted.

"Oh, nothing. Just talking to the captain here about her not doing her job correctly," Timmy said condescendingly.

"Really? You'd think as first officer you'd do your job by treating me with respect," Hat Kid hissed.

"Nah, that's not my job to boost your ego. My job is to pilot and command the ship if you are unable to, which it seems like right fricking now you can't!" He yelled.

"I can command and pilot this ship _just fine!_" Hat Kid yelled back.

"Physically, yes, but mentally, definitely not! If you do not smarten up, I may have to take over, even if you don't agree with it!" He warned her.

"You aren't threatening to _mutiny,_ are you?" She mocked.

"If it means keeping us safe, **of course **I will!" He yelled.

"_**ENOUGH!**_" Bailey yelled, shutting them both up. She didn't typically get that angry. "Both of you, shut up! Your arguing and yelling is pointless and stupid! Timmy, she's right, she's your superior officer, you need to treat her with more respect!"

Hat Kid turned to Timmy and winked at him smugly. "See?" She said.

"And, captain, he's right, you should take your job more seriously, and you should treat _us _with more respect! You couldn't do this alone! Now, both of you are clearly unable to do your jobs right now, so we are going back to Chronos, now. I don't care what either of you say, we're going back," Bailey hissed.

Marcus came out of the lab after hearing Bailey's shouting.

"What happened?" He asked nervously, and Bailey pointed at Hat Kid and Timmy.

"They began arguing about her job and whatever, so I had to teach them both a lesson," He said.

"I-I was thinking you should treat your job more seriously, Captain," He admitted. This dropped her heart.

"D-do you all really think my leadership is that bad?" She asked, and they all looked at eachother, then looked at her and nodded in unison sadly.

"Sorry, Hattie, but you are kind of acting... uh... jerk-y as of now," Alexa admitted.

She sighed. "Okay. You're right, Bailey, let's go back. I think we need a break," She said sadly, then set course for home. She sighed. She was probably overworking herself or exposing herself to Time Pieces too much, and thus changing her. Hopefully a break would fix that.

However, she wasn't going to get a break for a long, _**LONG **_time.


	20. Chapter 19: Alone

Chapter 19: Alone

**A/N: Prepare for one peck of a ride.**

After a week, they were back to the planet they called home. Hat Kid docked the ship at the spaceport and climbed out. Her four crewmates didn't follow her, though.

"Are you guys coming? Don't you wanna go see your friends and families and whatever?" She asked.

"Maybe later. I'd rather stay here," Timmy said, and the others nodded in agreement.

"Okay, suit yourself," Hat Kid replied. She left the spaceport and walked through the city until she came to the large building she used to live in. She called Tim.

"Hello?" He greeted.

"Hello!" Hat Kid replied happily.

"Oh, kid! Welcome back! I didn't know you were coming back so soon! Anything happen?" He muttered.

"I, uh, got into an argument with my crew and we thought we should take a break," She explained.

"Oh, that's a shame. Whatever, conflict can be healthy if done correctly," He mumbled.

"Yeah, I wouldn't say this was, uh, a good conflict," She grumbled.

"Either way, I'll be down shortly, wait there," He told her, and she did so, until Tim and Christine came down to greet her. She hugged them both.

"Anything happen while I was gone?" She asked them.

"Well... uh..." Tim said uncomfortably, then scratched her head. She frowned. That didn't mean good news. "Actually, uh..."

"We're getting married!" Christine stated happily, and Hat Kid's jaw dropped.

"You... _what?_" Was all she could say. "This... this isn't some sort of prank or anything, is it?"

Tim frowned. "Something wrong, kiddo?" He asked, "You don't like that we're getting married?"

"No, no, no. It's... it's not that, uhhh, I'm just extremely surprised... and I don't know how to react," She muttered, "Honestly, though, I'm happy for you two. I always thought you two would be cute together, but it felt like a dumb idea and I didn't think it was worth mentioning, as I thought it would make you uncomfortable."

Tim chuckled. "Yeah, probably would've. Either way, wanna go do something?" He asked.

"I guess?" She answered uncertainly. They decided to maybe drive around the city for awhile and do random things, nothing new, but before they could do that, Hat Kid was interrupted by a pinging.

She was being called by someone.

She opened the call, and it revealed a _**very**_ panicked Alexa, and it seemed like she was trying to hide from something... or someone.

"Alex? Alex, what's wrong?!" She asked her cook anxiously.

"I-I don't know! The intruder alarm went off but we didn't see anyone enter, but Marcus is gone and nobody knows where he is!" She explained quietly, "Please, get back here soon!"

"Ok, I'm coming there ASAP!" Hat Kid exclaimed, but before Alexa could respond, Hat Kid saw a shadow loom over Alexa, and she noticed, looked up, then screamed before the image cut out. She felt something she only felt before when she was being stalked by that insane soldier.

Pure, utter, fear.

She turned to Tim. "Take me to the spaceport, _**NOW!**_" She yelled at the top of her lungs, and he didn't ask, they all just bolted down to Tim's vehicle and he sped off toward the spaceport. He drove so fast they were there in less than a minute, and they took the fastest way up to the dock they were at.

They entered the spaceship. It was eerily silent, only the sounds of the spaceship filling the vehicle.

"Marc? Alex? Bailey? Timmy?" She called out, but no response came. They began to search through the entire spaceship, and checked every single room, even the pillow fort, the bathroom, and the attic, but they didn't find anything. At least, until Hat Kid, out of curiosity, decided to check her toybox.

When she opened it, something jumped out and tackled her to the ground. She looked up to see Timmy with a look of pure hatred on his face, but he realized it was her and lowered his guard.

"Oh, it's you!" He said, clearly relieved.

"What happened?" She asked him.

"I-I don't know! Someone snuck on the ship, and I think they kidnapped the other three and took the Time Pieces!" He explained, "I feared for my life, so I snuck into the toybox so I wouldn't get caught!" He smacked himself in the face. "I feel like a coward. I should have stayed and protected them," He muttered.

"It doesn't matter anymore. We're going to find that sorry excuse of a person and we'll make them regret their entire existence," She hissed, and he grinned darkly.

"Yes. We will," He said slowly.

"We don't have any way of finding out where he's gone, though," She said.

"Actually, we can try scanning the planet for Time Piece signatures and try to find him," He suggested.

"No. The entire planet is covered in thousands, maybe millions of them. It would be like looking for a needle in a haystack," She said, "It's not a great idea, no offense."

"But it's the only idea we've got," He reminded her, and she huffed.

"You're right," She replied, and they scanned the planet, and found a strong signature that seemed like that of 50 Time Pieces in a person-sized area coming from near the Citadel. They jumped out and bolted there. To their concern, there were a lot of people at the spaceport, almost like they were trying to flee the planet.

When they got there, the situation did not look good. The entire building seemed to be covered in flames and ashes, banners were singed or burning, and there was not a person in sight, as most likely everyone had fled.

Well, at least that was the case until people came out of buildings, then shouted and pointed toward them, then bolted toward them. Hat Kid looked at one of these people and became extremely concerned for the wellbeing of her comrades.

The people running toward them, judging by their clothing, were from a secret mafia/gang/terrorist organization called the Legion, that go back since the dawn of the Time Lords.

If the Legion was out here unafraid, then the person that took their comrades and their Time Pieces must've been their leader. They bolted into the Citadel before the Legionnaires could reach them, and inside the Citadel was a tall, male Time Lord juggling the Time Pieces, and three people were laying on the ground.

"_**HEY!**_" Hat Kid screamed at the top of her lungs, and the man slowly turned around. He had black tattoos all over his face and along his arms, and he was wearing pitch black clothing. Indeed, it was the leader of the Legion, the most infamous and wanted person in all of Chronos: Adamus Severus Fortunio, or as he was more commonly known as, Misfortune.

"Well, well, well. Look who finally decided to show up. I suppose you are here for your beloved crew members?" He asked malevolently.

"And the Time Pieces," Timmy hissed.

Alexa slowly sat up and gave a look of horror to her captain and first officer. "No... Please... You'll just get hurt... Please, leave. We can handle ourselves," She begged weakly.

The criminal laughed. "You are foolish if you think you can oppose me. Do you not understand? **I am a god now!** Who are _you_ to think you can stop _me?_" He shouted.

"Simple. I would die to stop you and take the Time Pieces back," Hat Kid said.

He nodded slowly, clearly unfazed. "Your death would be pointless. I plan on keeping you alive," Misfortune said.

"Their lives are more important than mine. Let them go, and perhaps we can find a compromise," She demanded.

"You are in **no **situation to make demands. I shall be making the demands here," He hissed, then pulled out a dagger and pointed it toward the three kids on the ground. "How about this: You stay out of my way, and I insure the safety of your companions. If you don't, I kill them all."

"Don't do it!" Bailey shouted, then collapsed to the ground again.

Both Timmy and Hat Kid crossed their arms.

"I made an oath to die before I let the Time Pieces fall into the hands of evil. I failed that oath now. I shall reap what I have sown, _even if I have to go __**to hell and back!**_" Hat Kid yelled.

The villain nodded, not surprised, then laughed.

"I knew you weren't going to side with me. What a shame, those three children seem like lovely people. Now I'll have to kill them," He said evilly, "Well, if you're so intent on stopping me, **bring it on!**"

Hat Kid pulled out a makeshift weapon she made, a piece of metal forged into a blade shape, but not sharpened, and Timmy took a defensive stance. He did know how to fight. Hat Kid let out a battle cry and charged toward Misfortune, who literally flew out of the way. He prepared to throw a Time Piece at her head, but Timmy got in front of her, and to both of their surprise, chucked a dark purple fireball at him.

His tattoos were glowing blue now. As Misfortune was not expecting the sudden attack, it hit him square in the face and exploded, knocking him backward to the ground. He had to put himself out, and while he was doing that, Hat Kid looked at Timmy.

"You know magic?" She asked him, and he winked and shrugged his shoulders. "Why didn't you tell me?" She asked.

"Didn't seem relevant yet," He explained, but they were both distracted when Misfortune growled and got up.

"Hmph. You're both stronger than I originally thought. Perhaps you'll actually make me use my full power," He muttered, then teleported around the room and tossed a Time Piece at Hat Kid, who blocked it with the dull blade.

However, he wasn't done yet, and he teleported behind her, picked her up by her cape, then threw her down to the ground, knocking the weapon from her hand and causing her to groan.

Timmy jumped toward him and kicked him in the face, then picked up the blade and lit it on fire, then began trying to fight the supervillain with it. However, Misfortune, being a demigod from the Time Pieces as well as being an adult, effortlessly overpowered him, then threw a small ball of Time Pieces at him, which exploded and knocked him down.

He grumbled and tried to get up, but couldn't. Hat Kid was in utter horror. They'd lost. Even worse, they'd lost so easily and quickly, it was pathetic! Misfortune walked in circles around Hat Kid's fallen crew with a thoughtful look on his face.

Next, he did something that took what little was left of Hat Kid's hope and crushed it. He picked up his dagger, then picked up Marcus by the back of his throat, then put the blade on his jugular, and turned to face Hat Kid, who fell to her hands and knees.

"No, no! Please! I'll do anything you want! Literally anything! I will obey anything you say! Please, just let them live!" She begged, tears streaming down her face.

Misfortune grinned evilly. "Now you want to help me, eh? Well, it's too late for that now. Say goodbye to your friends," He said, then slashed the blade, and Marcus fell to the ground.

"_**NO!**_" She screamed.

Then, he picked up Bailey by the back of her throat and put the blade against her jugular as well. Bailey smiled at Hat Kid sadly.

"S-sorry, captain," She said weakly, then her throat was slit as well and she fell to the ground. However, Misfortune's bloodlust was not satisfied yet, and he picked up Alexa by the back of her throat, and she tried squirming away, but it was useless. She stopped and looked into Hat Kid's eyes.

"Best friends forever?" She asked sadly, and Hat Kid nodded.

"Forever and ever," Hat Kid replied through tears, and Misfortune slashed Alexa's throat as well. Hat Kid fell to the ground, went into the fetal position, then began crying. Now, all she had left to hope for was that he'd leave Timmy alone. She couldn't lose everyone.

Tragically, Misfortune picked Timmy up by the front of his throat and raised him into the air. He shouted out and tried punching him in the stomach, but it didn't do anything. Hat Kid had regained her bearings and charged straight at Misfortune with murder in her eyes, and tried knocking Timmy out of his grasp before he tried to stab him.

However, he counterattacked her and knocked her back through a wall. She wasn't ready to give up just yet, and she crawled toward them. Just before she could reach them, Misfortune grinned at her and stabbed Timmy through the stomach, then dropped him to the ground.

She crawled over to her fallen companions and did everything she could. She checked all of their breathing and pulses. Nothing. They were all dead. She tried CPR. She tried conjuring a spell, but she didn't know magic. She tried praying to Chronos. She tried everything.

But they were gone.

She felt a new emotion well up inside her, but, strangely, it was like the opposite of an emotion. In that moment, she felt:

Empty.

Nothing. Like her life was sucked right out of her and she was only a walking shell. She closed their eyes and gave her respects to them, then began bawling. She didn't get to say goodbye. The thing that broke her heart most, however, was that she didn't get to apologize to them for taking them for granted.

But now, she wasn't going to get another chance. Misfortune knelt down to Hat Kid and put his hand on her shoulder, then looked at her with a sympathetic look.

"I understand, girl, I understand. More than you could think," He told her, and she glared at him with a burning inferno in her eyes, then let out an inhumane growl at him.

"_**You? **__Sympathy? _The only thing you could possibly understand about this is what you learn from those you murder!" She screamed, and he stared disappointedly at her.

"Don't worry, though. You won't be separated for long," He told her sadistically, then raised his blood-stained dagger above his head and prepared to strike. She told herself to move, but she was paralyzed.

She screamed out and closed her eyes, but the sound of a Time Piece breaking filled the room and a grunt was heard. She opened her eyes, and Misfortune was lying on the ground next to a Time Piece. Next, someone stepped between the two and took a defensive stance over Hat Kid. It was Tim.

"Adamus!" He shouted, and the villain laughed.

"Hello, Timothy. I see you came to see your _old pal?_" Misfortune asked mockingly.

"Don't make me vomit! I don't give a damn about you! You know what I came here to do?" He asked in an ungodly rage no one had ever seen, "I came here _**to kill you!**_"

"Oh, Timothy, just as naive as you were decades ago. You cannot stop me," Misfortune said as he got up, "I was just showing your daughter that."

Hearing this, he turned around to see a broken Hat Kid laying down on the ground and the four children she came to love and care for so deeply about on the ground, dead.

"What did you do? _**WHAT DID YOU DO?!**_" He screamed at the top of his lungs, "That's it! No mercy for you!" He then charged at him after breaking a Time Piece and punched him in the face. He got up and they began clashing, but then someone snuck in and grabbed Hat Kid's hand gently and tugged on it.

She looked up to see Christine there, urging her to get up. "Get up! We need to evacuate!" She ordered, and she did, and she led the girl toward the door, but she looked back to see Tim fighting Misfortune and stopped.

"B-but..." She said sadly, "I need to help him!"

"You're injured, and distraught. You've done all you can. He can take care of himself. I've known him longer than you have and I know what he's capable of. He'll be fine. Come," Christine cooed, then Hat Kid turned and nodded sadly.

They came out into the large Citadel courtyard, then Christine took out a tiny pad and pressed a button, then Hat Kid's spaceship flew down toward them, landing gently on the ground. Hat Kid climbed inside and expected to see Christine jump in as well, but only saw the hatch close and lock behind her.

"W-wha?" She said, then Christine gave her an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry, Hattie, I really am, but you're more valuable than me. Tim saw greatness in you, so you must live. I'm just a worker. I'll see if I can help him fight Misfortune," Christine explained, tears streaming down her face as well.

"P-please! Don't leave me!" Hat Kid begged.

"You're stronger than you know. You'll struggle through, I know. Maybe you can find a new family," Christine explained shakily, "Heather, I love you, like a mother would her daughter, I promise we'll see eachother again."

She pressed a button again, and then waved as the spaceship began rising in the air. Hat Kid had her face pressed against the window, and looked down to see Christine run inside the crumbling remains of the Citadel.

The last event she saw before the spaceship engaged it's hyperdrive was Misfortune striking down Christine and managing to overpower Tim and grab him by the throat, before he went limp.

"_**NOOOO!**_" She screamed so loudly she lost her voice, then fell down and cried every tear she could muster before the ship stopped in the middle of space.

She looked around, and came to a realization that depressed her.

After all her triumphs, all her tragedies, all her laughter, all her crying, finding friends, making enemies, having conversations, having arguments, running around, sitting down and relaxing...

She was alone.

Again.


End file.
